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MUNGO   PARK   SEEING  THE   MOSS    IN   THE   DESERT. 


Page  jo. 


A  8.  £fzM/yia/H&A 

Story  of  the  Niger 


Ruins  of  the  Cottage  at  Fowhhiels,  near  Selkirk, 
in  which  Mungo  Park  was  born. 


Gbomas  IRelson  ano  Sons, 

LONDON,      EDINBURGH,      AND      NEW     YORK. 


STORY  OF  THE  NIGER 


A    Record  of   Travel  and  Adventure 

From  the  Days  of  Mnngo  Park 

To  the  Present  Time. 


IRobert   1Ricbarfcsont 

Author  of  " Adventurous  Boat  Voyages,"  "Almost  a  Hero, 

"  Ralph's  Year  in  Russia," 

etc     etc. 


With    31    Illustrations 


Jjkottbon: 

T.    NELSON    AND    SONS,    PATERNOSTER    ROW. 

EDINBURGH  ;    AND    NEW    YORK. 


LOAN  STACK 


—ir 


'r3££Q 


DT^7 
R53-/ 

IV\MaJ 


preface. 


This  Story  of  the  Niger  is  a  rapid  summary  of 
facts.  The  material  upon  which  the  narrative  is 
based  is  found  scattered  over  many  bulky  volumes, 
such  as  few  readers  would  have  either  the  leisure  or 
the  inclination  to  attack.  But  it  has  been  thought 
that,  from  the  intrinsic  interest  of  the  story,  a  brief 
continuous  narrative  might  prove  acceptable  to  all 
who  love  a  tale  of  travel  and  adventure.  The  story 
in  these  pages  is  essentially  that  told  by  the  actors 
in  the  drama  themselves,  and  is  such  as  demanded  no 
decoration  at  second  hand.  What  has  been  aimed  at 
was  simply  to  collect  all  that  was  most  striking  and 
interesting,  most  pathetic  or  most  humorous,  and  to 
weld  the  whole  together  in  a  consecutive  and  trust- 
worthy narrative. 

Attention   may  be  called   specially  to  the  Sketch 


570 


vin  PREFACE. 

Map  of  the  Basins  of  the  Senegal  and  Niger,  showing 
Mungo  Park's  intended  route  on  his  second  expedi- 
tion to  Central  Africa,  which  is  here  reproduced  in 
facsimile  from  the  original  drawing  made  by  the 
traveller,  and  presented  by  him  to  his  niece,  Miss 
Jane  Park.  R  R 


dgToittntts. 


I.    AFRICAN  DISCOVERY   PREVIOUS  TO  PARK,      ... 
II.   park's  FIRST  JOURNEY,     ... 

III.  park's  second  journey, 

IV.  clapperton  and  the  landers,   ... 

V.    EXPLORATION   OF  THE  NIGER  AND   BENUEH, 
VI.  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION  TO  THE  UPPER  NIGER, 
VII.   DR.   BARTH'S  TRAVELS,       ... 
VIII.   MR.   THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER, 


15 
22 
78 
92 
129 
154 
267 
326 


^Mist  of  ^lustrations. 


MUNGO  PARK  SEEING  THE  MOSS  IN  THE  DESERT,  .  .  . .  Frontispiece 

RUINS    OP     THE     COTTAGE    AT    FOWLSHIELS,     NEAR    SELKIRK,    IN     WHICH 

mungo  park  was  born,  . .  . .  . .  . .  Vignette 

MAP    OF    CENTRAL    AFRICA,     SHOWING    THE    BASIN    OF    THE    NIGER    AND 

ADJACENT  COUNTRIES,                     .  .                   .  .                   . .                   .  .                   .  .  Xiv 

MAP  OF  PARK'S  TRAVELS  IN   AFRICA,   WITH   THE  COURSE  OF   THE  NIGER,  23 

MUNGO  PARK'S  FIRST  SIGHT  OF  THE  NIGER,                                             ..                   ..  43 

TOWN   HOUSE   OF  THE  SOMONOS  OF  SEGO,    ON   THE  NIGER,              ..                   ..  47 

THE  NEGRO   SONG,                     . .                   . .                   .  .                   .  .                   .  .                   . .  51 

A  LION  IN  THE  WAY,              . .                                        . .                                         . .                   . .  59 

MEAT-MARKET  AT  YAMINA,   ON  THE  NIGER,    .  .                   .  .                   .  .                   . .  63 

BAMBOO  BRIDGE   ACROSS  THE   BAFING,                .  .                   .  .                   .  .                   .  .  75 

FACSIMILE  OF  SKETCH    MAP  OF  MUNGO  PARK'S    INTENDED  ROUTE  IN  HIS 

second  expedition  to  the  nioer. — From  a  Drawing  by  himself,    . .  87 

river  scene  in  western  africa,                . .             . .             .  .             . .  107 

king  obie's  visit  to  the  "alburkah,"      ..             ..             ..  123 

french  expedition  against  the  toucouleurs,      ..            ..            ..  159 

gallieni's  expedition  on  the  senegal  between  matam  and  bakel,  165 

fire  on  the  left  bank  of  the  bakhoy,  near  demba-dioube,          .  .  179 

village  of  solinta,  on  the  bakhoy,         . .              .  .              .  .              .  .  183 

forest  near  the  bily  falls,  on  the  bakhoy,       . .             . .             .  .  191 

the  refractory  ass-drivers,        .  .              .  .              . .              . .              . .  195 

improvised  bridge  over  the  kegneko,     ..                            ..             ..  201 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


REVIEW    ON    THE    PLAINS    OP    KITA    TO  CELEBRATE    THE   TREATY  OF   PRO- 
TECTORATE WITH  FRANCE, 
CROSSING  THE  BANDINGHO, 
RETREAT   OF   GALLIENl's   EXPEDITION    FROJ 
TORNADO  IN   THE  BIRGO  COUNTRY, 
MARKET  AT  SOKOTO, 
SONGHAY  VILLAGE, 
TIMBUCTOO, 

ENCAMPMENT  OF   SHEIK  BL   BAKAY, 
A  NUPE  VILLAGE, 

FILLANI  NOBLEMAN  AND  ATTENDANTS, 
VIEW  IN  SOKOTO, 


211 

DIO, 

219 

231 

275 

283 

301 

307 

339 

343 

347 

STORY   OF  THE    NIGER, 


CHAPTER    I. 

AFRICAN    DISCOVERY    PREVIOUS    TO    PARK. 

From  very  early  times  down  to  the  present  day 
Africa  has  exercised  a  fascination  for  the  traveller : 
no  weaker  word  will  so  well  serve  to  express  the 
truth.  At  this  moment  no  other  land  seems  to  pos- 
sess such  a  spell  for  the  discoverer — not  even  the 
regions  of  the  North  Pole.  The  two  geographical 
secrets  which  our  modern  explorers,  land  and  mari- 
time, most  covet,  are  probably  the  discovery  of  the 
remaining  sources  of  the  Nile  and  the  discovery  of 
the  North  Pole. 

To  the  ancients,  Africa  was  a  land  of  mystery  and 
marvel ;  and  though  every  year  now  sees  some  new 
region  in  its  vast  territory  opened  up  and  reclaimed 
from  darkness,  it  is  to  a  large  extent  a  land  of  mys- 
tery and  marvel  still.  It  still  offers  to  the  explorer 
an  unrivalled  field  for  discovery  and  adventure. 


16  AFRICAN  DISCOVERY  PREVIOUS  TO  PARK. 

The  nations  of  antiquity  were,  however,  perfectly 
well  acquainted  with  the  northern  portions  of  Africa — 
those  bordering  on  the  Mediterranean  Sea,  and  in- 
cluding Carthage  and  Egypt.  It  was  in  respect  to 
the  regions  beyond  this  circuit  that  their  knowledge 
was  vague  and  conflicting.  South  of  the  countries 
skirting  the  sea-board  extended  the  immeasurable  tract 
of  desert  now  known  as  the  Great  Sahara,  whose  vast- 
ness  and  appalling  desolation  were  for  long  sufficient 
to  daunt  the  most  adventurous  spirits,  checking  the 
advance  alike  of  the  conqueror  and  the  traveller. 

The  interest  attached  to  early  African  discovery 
may  be  said  to  centre  in  the  river  Niger.  When  the 
attention  of  modern  European  nations  began  to  be 
turned  towards  Africa  as  a  land  offering  rich  oppor- 
tunities for  the  acquisition  of  territory,  and  the  in- 
crease of  national  wealth  and  power,  it  was  quickly 
seen  that  the  Niger  formed  the  natural  highway  to 
the  heart  of  the  country ;  and  to  hold  the  secret  of 
the  mighty  river,  to  trace  and  follow  its  course 
throughout  its  whole  vast  extent,  became  the  chief 
object  of  ambition  among  the  discoverers  of  many  dif- 
ferent lands. 

Among  the  earliest  historical  references — probably 
the  earliest  reference — to  what  modern  geographers 
have  supposed  to  be  the  Niger,  is  to  be  found  in  an 
account  given  by  Herodotus  of  a  journey  made  by 
five  young  Nasamones  of  noble  birth  and  ardent  spirit, 


AFRICAN  DISCOVERY  PREVIOUS  TO  PARK.  17 

who  may  be  regarded  as  having  formed  the  first  Geo- 
graphical Association.  After  a  long  and  adventurous 
journey,  the  travellers  came  upon  a  great  river  flow- 
ing from  west  to  east,  on  whose  banks  dwelt  a  nation 
of  small  black  men.  This  river  Herodotus  without 
hesitation  declared  to  be  the  Nile.  That  it  was  not 
the  Nile  is  certain ;  and  even  that  it  was  the  Niger 
is  a  disputed  point  among  those  who  have  most  closely 
considered  the  question.  It  has  been  contended  by 
some  writers  that  the  young  Nasamones,  by  following 
the  course  described  by  their  historian,  could  never 
have  reached  the  Quorra  or  Niger ;  while  others  main- 
tain that  such  a  goal  to  their  journey  was  quite  pos- 
sible, and  that  the  city  which  the  travellers  found  on 
the  banks  of  the  river,  peopled  by  a  diminutive  race  of 
black  men,  was  no  other  than  Timbuctoo. 

Mention  is  made  of  the  Niger  by  both  Strabo  and 
Pliny,  the  former  briefly,  the  latter  at  great  length. 
Pliny  adopts  the  idea  of  Herodotus  that  the  Niger  was 
one  and  the  same  river  with  the  Nile  ;  but  when 
Ptolemy  comes  to  treat  the  subject  he  directly  con- 
troverts this  theory,  though,  from  lack  of  accurate 
knowledge,  he  offers  nothing  in  its  place  save  vague 
surmise. 

We  learn  a  good  deal  of  the  geography  of  Africa 
from  Arabian  writers,  but  very  little  that  is  either 
accurate  or  even  suggestive  in  regard  to  the  river 
Niger.     The  Arabs  at  one  time  exercised  a  great  in- 

(94)  2 


18  AFRICAN  DISCOVERY  PREVIOUS  TO  PARK. 

fluence  over  Africa — planted  colonies,  built  cities,  car- 
ried on  an  extensive  commerce  with  the  natives  in 
gold  and  slaves,  and  finally  established  themselves  as 
the  dominant  power  in  the  land.  The  most  famous 
among  Arabian  travellers  was  Ibu  Batutu,  a  Moham- 
medan gentleman  distinguished  by  his  learning  and 
accomplishments,  who  lived  in  the  fourteenth  century. 
In  the  course  of  his  travels,  Ibu  Batutu  undoubtedly 
beheld  the  Niger,  but  made  the  same  mistake  in  re- 
gard to  it  as  had  been  made  by  older  writers,  suppos- 
ing it  to  be  identical  with  the  Nile. 

The  next  traveller  who  contributed  anything  note- 
worthy to  our  knowledge  of  Africa  was  the  geographer 
Leo,  a  native  of  Granada,  who,  for  his  explorations  in 
the  African  continent,  received  the  cognomen  of  Afri- 
canus.  He,  too,  elaborated  a  theory  in  regard  to  the 
Niger,  affirming  that  it  had  its  source  in  a  lake  lying 
to  the  south  of  Bornou. 

While  Portugal  was  in  the  zenith  of  her  power, 
and  her  ships  were  supreme  upon  the  seas,  she  directed 
her  energies  towards  Africa  with  a  view  to  coloniza- 
tion and  national  aggrandizement.  Portuguese  navi- 
gators made  important  discoveries  along  the  western 
shores  of  the  continent,  opening  up  to  commerce  and 
the  world  the  mouths  of  three  several  rivers — the 
Senegal,  the  Gambia,  and  the  Rio  Grande — all  of 
which  they  believed  to  be  the  channels  by  which  the 
Niger   emptied  itself  into  the  Atlantic.     The  power 


AFRICAN  DISCOVERY  PREVIOUS  TO  PARK.  19 

and  influence  of  Portugal,  both  on  land  and  sea,  waned 
until  the  nation  ceased  to  be  a  factor  in  the  councils 
of  Europe.  But  after  a  long  period  of  inglorious  tor- 
por in  the  direction  of  discovery  and  scientific  enter- 
prise, Portugal  is  again  showing  signs  of  coining  to 
the  front,  if  we  may  take  as  evidence  the  recent 
spirited  and  wonderful  journey  of  Major  Serpo  Pinta 
across  Africa. 

From  this  brief  survey  of  early  African  discovery 
it  will  be  seen  that  the  river  Niger,  though  it  was 
made  the  focus  of  exploration,  for  a  long  period  baffled 
the  attempts  of  travellers  to  determine  accurately 
either  its  source  or  its  course.  It  was  reserved  for 
England  to  pierce  and  dissipate  the  thick  cloud  of 
obscurity  which  veiled  the  great  river.  Yet  this  was 
not  accomplished  immediately,  nor  without  sacrifice. 

An  association  was  formed  in  England  in  1788, 
which  took  the  title  of  the  African  Association.  As 
its  name  suggests,  the  object  of  the  association  was 
to  stimulate  and  encourage  African  discovery.  The 
endeavours  of  the  committee  to  find  persons  willing 
and  competent  to  attempt  the  arduous  task  of  pene- 
trating into  the  interior  of  Africa  met  with  a  quick 
response,  the  first  volunteer  for  the  required  work 
being  Mr.  Ledyard.  The  chief  qualifications  which 
this  gentleman  possessed  for  the  enterprise,  besides 
dauntless  courage  and  great  ardour,  were  his  having 
been  a  comrade  of  the  illustrious  Cook  in  his  voyage 


20  AFRICAN  DISCOVERY  PREVIOUS  TO  PARK. 

round  the  world,  and  his  having  spent  many  years  of 
adventurous  life  among  the  North  American  Indians. 
Mr.  Ledyard's  career  in  Africa  was  a  sadly  brief  one. 
While  at  Cairo,  whence  his  expedition  was  to  set  out, 
he  was  laid  low  by  fever,  induced,  there  can  be  little 
doubt,  by  the  fretting  of  his  eager  and  impetuous 
spirit  at  some  hindrance  in  the  starting  of  his  caravan. 
Hasty  and  injudicious  treatment  of  himself  completed 
what  anxiety  and  vexation  had  begun ;  and  thus  the 
first  envoy  of  the  African  Association  brought  to  an 
untimely  close  an  enterprise  which,  had  intrepidity 
and  enthusiasm  been  all  that  was  required,  might  have 
had  a  brilliant  and  important  issue. 

The  next  traveller  employed  by  the  Association  was 
Mr.  Lucas.  He  was  unfortunate  in  the  timing  of  his 
journey,  for  the  regions  of  Africa  through  which  he 
endeavoured  to  pass  were  in  a  disturbed  and  danger- 
ous state,  owing  to  a  rebellion  among  the  Moors. 
Neither  camels  nor  guides  could  be  procured,  and  at 
last  the  traveller  was  obliged  to  abandon  his  enter- 
prise. Nevertheless  Mr.  Lucas  succeeded  in  collecting 
various  notes  relative  to  the  country  contiguous  to 
Tripoli,  which  added  something  to  the  general  know- 
ledge of  Africa. 

It  will  be  observed  that  these  two  attempts  to  ad- 
vance into  the  interior  of  Africa  were  land  expeditions. 
The  next  undertaken  was  so  far  of  the  same  character, 
but  the  start  was  from  an  entirely  different  point.  Major 


AFRICAN  DISCOVERY  PREVIOUS  TO  PARK.  21 

Houghton,  the  third  adventurer  in  the  field  of  African 
exploration,  chose  the  route  by  the  river  Gambia,  be- 
lieving that  he  would  thereby  most  surely  and  quickly 
reach  the  Niger.  Few  episodes  in  the  record  of  African 
adventure  are  more  pitiable  than  the  fate  of  this  gal- 
lant and  ardent  gentleman.  He  reached  in  safety 
Ferbanna,  on  the  Faleme,  where  he  was  welcomed  with 
every  hospitality  by  the  king,  who  forwarded  him  on 
his  journey  by  all  the  means  in  his  power.  The  next 
and  last  personal  communication  from  Major  Hough- 
ton told  of  his  being  in  good  health  and  spirits ;  but 
shortly  thereafter  the  report  came  of  his  death — a 
report  which  was  subsequently  confirmed  in  every 
essential  by  Park.  Plundered  of  everything  he  pos- 
sessed, and  left  to  wander  without  food  and  clothing  in 
the  heart  of  the  desert,  the  ill-fated  traveller  perished 
of  starvation,  exposure,  and  fatigue. 


CHAPTER    II. 

park's  first  journey. 

We  now  arrive  at  a  very  important  stage  in  the 
history  of  African  discovery  —  that  marked  by  the 
appearance  of  Mungo  Park.  Park's  success  as  a  dis- 
coverer having  so  greatly  exceeded  that  of  any  pre- 
vious traveller,  it  is  fitting  that  we  should  place 
before  the  reader  a  few  particulars  regarding  his 
early  life,  before  proceeding  to  give  an  epitome  of  his 
two  great  journeys. 

Mungo  Park's  birth-place  was  Fowlshiels,  near  Sel- 
kirk, where  he  first  saw  the  light  in  September  1771. 
The  elder  Park  was  a  well-to-do  farmer,  who  had  so 
strong  an  infusion  of  the  ambition  common  among 
Scottish  parents  of  giving  their  children  the  best  edu- 
cation in  their  power,  that  he  engaged  a  tutor  for  his 
boys  and  girls — a  rare  proceeding  on  the  part  of  a 
farmer  in  those  days.  Young  Mungo  Park  subse- 
quently attended  a  school  in  Selkirk,  where  he  does 
not  appear  to  have  displayed  more  than  an  average 
degree  of  ability  in  his  studies.      He  was  fond  of  all 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  25 

kinds  of  reading,  however,  and  was  generally  of  a 
thoughtful  temperament.  It  is  related  of  the  boy 
that  old  romances  and  the  stirring  Border  ballads  were 
among  his  favourite  reading,  which  would  seem  to 
indicate  that  beneath  the  quiet  reserve  of  his  outward 
bearing  there  smouldered  no  little  imagination  and 
enthusiasm. 

It  was  the  desire  of  his  parents  that  young  Mungo 
should  study  for  the  ministry,  but  the  lad's  own  in- 
clinations were  not  in  this  direction.  He  wished  to 
follow  the  medical  profession,  and  was  accordingly 
apprenticed  to  a  surgeon  in  Selkirk.  In  the  year 
1789  he  began  to  attend  the  medical  lectures  at  the 
Edinburgh  University,  and  finished  the  usual  three 
years'  course.  His  favourite  study  at  this  time,  and 
indeed  always,  was  botany. 

In  1792  Park  sailed  for  Sumatra,  as  assistant  sur- 
geon on  board  the  East  Indiaman  Worcester,  returning 
to  England  after  a  year's  absence.  The  desire  of  the 
African  Association  to  find  some  individual  qualified 
and  ready  to  prosecute  still  further  the  work  of  ex- 
ploration in  Africa,  and  to  endeavour  to  finish  what 
Major  Houghton  and  his  predecessors  had  little  more 
than  begun,  roused  the  ambition  and  enthusiasm  of 
Park,  and  he  offered  his  services  to  the  Association. 
The  committee  deemed  Mr.  Park's  qualifications  for 
his  task  fully  sufficient,  his  services  were  accepted, 
and   preparations  were  begun  for   his   departure  for 


26  PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 

Africa.  Nearly  two  years  elapsed,  however,  before  he 
was  ready  to  start. 

Park  sailed  from  Portsmouth  on  the  22  nd  of  May 
1795,  and  disembarked  in  Africa  at  Jillifree,  a  town 
on  the  Gambia.  On  the  5  th  July  he  reached  Pisania, 
where  he  was  warmly  welcomed  by  Dr.  Laidley. 
During  a  residence  of  five  months  with  his  hospitable 
host,  Park  attained  to  considerable  proficiency  in  the 
Mandingo  language ;  while  at  the  same  time  he  was 
active  in  studying  the  customs  and  character  of  the 
natives  and  the  natural  features  of  the  country — a 
pursuit  which  even  an  attack  of  fever  only  partially 
interrupted.  He  describes  the  Gambia  at  this  stage 
of  its  course  as  deep  and  muddy,  its  shores  hidden  by 
thickets  of  mangrove,  the  stream  itself  being  full  of 
fish  of  strange  and  unknown  varieties,  and  higher  up 
of  hippopotami  and  alligators. 

Mr.  Park  took  leave  of  Dr.  Laidley  early  in  De- 
cember 1795.  His  companions  were  three  in  num- 
ber— a  man,  a  boy,  and  a  horse.  The  first  was  a 
native  named  Johnson,  who  spoke  both  English  and 
Mandingo ;  the  second  a  negro  lad,  Demba,  who  was 
also  acquainted  with  several  languages  besides  his  own  ; 
while  the  horse  was  a  small  but  wiry  animal,  of  much 
spirit  and  hardihood.  Johnson  and  Demba  had  also 
an  ass  each,  which  carried  both  their  masters  and  the 
packs. 

On  December  the  5  th  the  little  party  of  travellers 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  27 

reached  Medina,  a  town  containing  some  one  thousand 
houses,  and  the  capital  of  the  kingdom  of  Wooli. 
King  Jatta,  the  ruling  sovereign  of  Wooli,  was  the 
king  who  had  so  hospitably  received  Major  Houghton 
during  his  sojourn  in  his  dominions;  and  he  now  mani- 
fested the  same  disposition  to  befriend  and  assist  Mr. 
Park.  Nevertheless  he  thought  it  incumbent  on  him 
to  try  to  dissuade  the  traveller  from  his  journey, 
assuring  him  that  the  same  fate  which  befell  Major 
Houghton  awaited  every  white  man  who  should  en- 
deavour to  pass  through  the  countries  east  of  Wooli. 
Mr.  Park  thanked  the  king  for  his  kindly  and  well- 
meant  advice,  but  said  that  he  must  at  all  hazards 
complete  the  task  he  had  begun. 

On  the  8th  the  travellers  reached  Kolor,  a  town  of 
some  size,  where  Mr.  Park  first  made  the  acquaintance 
of  that  curious  African  deity  or  demon — whichever  it 
may  be  regarded  as — Mumbo  Jumbo.  He  beheld,  sus- 
pended from  the  bough  of  a  tree,  a  sort  of  masquerade 
suit  made  of  bark,  and  this,  he  was  informed,  belonged 
to  Mumbo  Jumbo.  A  Kafir  may  marry  as  many 
wives  as  he  pleases,  or  can  afford  to  add  to  his  house- 
hold. One  result  of  this  system  of  polygamy,  as  it 
obtains  among  the  Mandingoes,  is  that  the  wives 
occasionally  fall  out.  When  these  intestine  wars  wax 
so  fierce  that  the  authority  of  the  husband  is  set  at 
defiance,  the  aid  of  Mumbo  Jumbo  is  invoked,  and 
seldom,  it  would  appear,  without  the  desired  effect. 


28  PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 

"  This  strange  minister  of  justice,"  writes  Mr.  Park, 
"(who  is  supposed  to  be  either  the  husband  himself 
or  some  person  instructed  by  him),  disguised  in  the 
dress  that  has  been  mentioned,  and  armed  with  the 
rod  of  public  authority,  announces  his  coming  by  loud 
and  dismal  screams  in  the  woods  near  the  town.  He 
begins  the  pantomime  at  the  approach  of  night ;  and 
as  soon  as  it  is  dark  he  enters  the  town  and  proceeds 
to  the  bentang,  at  which  all  the  inhabitants  immediately 
assemble."  It  will  thus  be  seen  that  Mumbo  Jumbo 
is  the  great  bugbear  or  "  Bogey "  of  Mandingo  Kafir 
wives. 

At  Koojar,  the  frontier  town  of  the  kingdom  of 
Bondou,  our  traveller  was  invited  to  witness  a 
neobering  or  wrestling-match.  The  antagonists, 
athletic  young  men  fired  with  emulation,  stripped 
naked,  save  for  a  short  pair  of  drawers,  and  with  their 
limbs  well  lubricated  with  shea  butter,  like  the  com- 
petitors in  the  ancient  classic  games,  approached  each 
other  on  all  fours.  After  some  little  feinting  and 
warding  the  rivals  closed,  and  then  began  a  display  of 
agility  and  strength  which  Mr.  Park  believed  few 
English  athletes  would  have  been  able  to  match. 
The  combatants  were  stimulated  in  their  contest  by 
the  music  of  a  drum,  to  whose  rude  strains  they  even, 
in  some  degree,  timed  their  movements. 

On  the  morning  of  the  12  th  the  travellers  entered 
the  wilderness  that  stretches  between  the  kingdoms 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  29 

of  Wooli  and  Bondou.  At  noon  they  found  them- 
selves beneath  a  large  tree,  the  odd  appearance  of 
which  could  not  fail  to  strike  Mr.  Park.  The  tree 
was  called  by  the  natives  Neema  Taba.  Its  branches 
were  ornamented  with  a  ragged  drapery  of  scraps  and 
patches  of  cloth  which  various  travellers  had  fastened 
to  them — at  first,  Mr.  Park  suggests,  to  indicate  that 
water  was  to  be  found  close  at  hand ;  and  the  custom 
having  in  time  come  to  be  regarded  as  a  sort  of 
religious  rite,  at  length  no  wayfarer  cared  to  pass 
without  hanging  up  something. 

Mr.  Park's  next  halting-place  was  Tallika,  the 
chief  town  in  the  Bondou  territory,  the  inhabitants  of 
which  seemed  to  do  a  brisk  commerce  in  supplying 
passing  caravans  with  provisions,  and  also  in  ivory — 
two  sources  of  wealth  which  enabled  them  to  live  in 
comfortable  estate. 

The  travellers  quitted  Tallika  on  December  14  th, 
but  had  ridden  only  a  short  distance  when  the  har- 
mony of  the  little  company — which,  it  must  be  stated, 
was  at  this  time  increased  by  a  party  of  Serawoollies — 
was  interrupted  by  a  fierce  quarrel  between  two  of  the 
number.  These  breakers  of  the  peace  indulged  in  some 
very  unflattering  epithets  towards  each  other ;  which 
causes  Mr.  Park  to  relate,  as  a  circumstance  worthy  of 
note,  that  a  blow  is  a  much  lighter  insult  to  an 
African  than  a  slighting  word  spoken  of  his  rela- 
tives.     "  Strike   me,  but   do  not  curse  my  mother," 


30  PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 

is  an  expression  frequently  heard  even  from  the  lips 
of  slaves.  Mr.  Park  took  prompt  measures  to  put  an 
end  to  this  unseemly  quarrel  between  his  fellow- 
travellers,  by  plainly  informing  the  one  who  was  mani- 
festly in  the  wrong,  that  if  he  attempted  to  draw  his 
cutlass  again,  he  should  regard  him  as  a  robber  and 
shoot  him  on  the  spot — a  threat  which  had  all  the 
desired  effect.  The  above  is  an  example  of  the  prompt 
and  fearless  measures  which  Mr.  Park  could  command 
whenever  any  crisis  called  for  such — a  quality  all  the 
more  remarkable  in  one  naturally  disposed  to  be  pro- 
pitiatory, where  propitiatory  action  would  by  any 
means  serve  his  end. 

On  the  21st  Mr.  Park  arrived  at  Fatteconda,  the 
chief  town  in  Bondou,  where  he  was  quickly  presented 
to  the  king,  Almami.  The  traveller  approached  the 
presence  of  this  personage  with  some  feeling  of  doubt, 
for  he  had  heard  that  Almami's  conduct  towards 
Major  Houghton  was  marked  by  great  unkindness. 
Mr.  Park  therefore  took  the  precaution  of  bringing 
with  him  gifts  of  some  value.  The  king  received  the 
presents  more  graciously  than  the  giver  had  hoped 
for,  and  then,  after  some  long  and  circumlocutory 
praise  of  white  men  in  general,  their  riches  and  their 
generosity,  descended  to  particulars  by  passing  a 
warm  eulogium  on  Mr.  Park's  coat — a  blue  one,  gay 
with  yellow  buttons  —  and  finally  wound  up  his 
speech    in   the   manner  that  the    traveller    probably 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  31 

anticipated,  by  begging  him  to  present  him  with  the 
garment.  Though  the  coat  was  the  only  good  one  in 
Mr.  Park's  possession,  he  deemed  it  politic  to  consent 
to  the  king's  request,  knowing  that  with  an  African 
prince  a  request  is  usually  synonymous  with  a  com- 
mand. The  traveller's  mortification  in  this  instance 
must  have  been  all  the  greater  from  the  circumstance 
that  he  had  put  on  his  new  blue  coat  in  the  fond 
expectation  that  his  back  was  the  safest  place  for  it — 
a  process  of  reasoning  altogether  too  simple  for  the 
occasion,  as  the  event  proved. 

King  Almami,  however,  so  far  reimbursed  Mr.  Park 
for  the  loss  of  his  coat  as  to  supply  him  with  plenty 
of  provisions,  and  subsequently — as  a  mark  of  special 
favour  probably — introduced  him  to  the  ladies  of  his 
household,  who  had  expressed  a  wish  to  see  the 
stranger.  This  interview  with  King  Almami's  wives 
formed  one  of  the  funniest  episodes  in  Park's  travels. 

These  were  about  a  dozen  in  number,  for  the  most 
part  of  comely  aspect  and  lively  demeanour.  Two 
features  in  the  traveller's  appearance  especially  sur- 
prised and  amused  them — the  whiteness  of  his  com- 
plexion, and  the  prominence  of  his  nose.  He  had 
been  washed  in  milk  when  a  child,  they  insisted,  and 
had  thus  become  so  white,  while  his  nose  had  attained 
its  present  unnatural  and  preposterous  shape  by  dint 
of  daily  pinching.  Mr.  Park  met  the  badinage  of 
the   dusky  beauties  in  a  like  light  and  lively  vein, 


32  PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 

indulging  in  a  liberal  strain  of  compliment  on  the  good 
looks  of  African  ladies.  His  entertainers  replied  that 
honey-mouth,  their  expressive  phrase  for  flattery,  was 
but  lightly  regarded  in  Bondou.  Nevertheless  they 
did  not  seem  altogether  indifferent  to  the  white  man's 
approval,  one  proof  of  which  may  have  been  the  little 
present — a  jar  of  honey  and  some  fish — which  they 
afterwards  sent  to  his  hut. 

Park  quitted  Fatteconda  on  the  23rd,  and  presently 
reached  Joag,  in  the  kingdom  of  Kagaaga,  the  in- 
habitants of  which  are  called  Serawoollies,  a  people 
who  show  a  marked  capacity  for  business,  are  fairly 
honest  and  straightforward  in  their  dealings,  and  many 
of  whom  attain  to  comparative  wealth  from  the  sale 
of  gold,  salt,  and  cotton.  Our  traveller  was  not  well 
treated  by  the  Serawoollies,  being  robbed  of  his 
money  by  a  party  of  horsemen,  who  pretended 
that  he  had  contravened  the  laws  of  the  country 
by  entering  it  without  paying  duty.  As  an  offset 
to  this  indignity,  however,  he  met  with  unexpected 
kindness  at  the  hands  of  an  old  woman,  who  behold- 
ing him  sitting,  disconsolate  and  hungry-looking,  be- 
neath a  bentang  tree,  asked  him  if  he  had  had  his 
dinner.  On  Park's  replying  in  the  negative,  and 
recounting  the  circumstances  of  his  robbery,  the  old 
woman,  placing  on  the  ground  the  basket  she  had 
been  carrying  on  her  head,  took  from  it  some  hand- 
fuls  of  nuts,  and,  with  a  look  of  much  solicitude  and 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  33 

pity,  presented  them  to  the  white  man.  This  was  the 
first  of  many  similar  instances  of  spontaneous  and 
unlooked-for  kindness  which  Park  experienced  from 
the  rude  and  untutored  peoples  among  whom  his 
journey  led  him,  and  it  will  be  seen,  as  the  narrative 
proceeds,  how,  in  his  sorest  straits,  he  was  especially 
indebted  to  women  for  succour  and  solace. 

Park's  next  important  halting-place  was  Koonia- 
kari  in  the  kingdom  of  Kasson,  where  he  was  well 
received  by  the  king,  Demba  Sego  Jalla,  a  favour- 
able specimen  of  a  native  prince,  whose  prowess  in 
war  and  clemency  in  peace  had  secured  the  sincere 
attachment  of  his  people.  Demba  Sego  Jalla  had  seen 
Major  Houghton,  and  had  made  him  a  present  of  a 
white  horse.  He  knew  that  the  traveller  had  been 
killed  by  the  Moors,  but  could  not  supply  Mr.  Park 
with  the  particulars  of  his  death.  Park  was  fur- 
nished by  the  king  with  two  guides  to  conduct  him 
to  Kaarta,  the  capital  of  which,  Kemmoo,  he  presently 
reached.  Towards  sunset  of  the  same  day  he  had  an 
audience  of  the  king  (Daisey  Koorabani)  who  received 
the  white  man  seated  simply  on  a  bank  of  earth, 
which,  covered  with  a  leopard-skin,  formed  the  royal 
throne.  King  Daisey  was  surrounded  by  a  large  body 
of  guards  and  attendants,  who  preserved  excellent 
order ;  but  save  for  the  elevation  of  his  seat  and  the 
leopard-skin,  there  was  nothing  about  the  king  to 
distinguish  him  from  the  rest  of  his  court. 

(94)  3 


34  PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 

When  Park  had  explained  to  King  Daisey  the  cir- 
cumstances and  object  of  his  journey,  and  asked  his 
aid  in  forwarding  him  on  his  way,  the  latter  listened 
to  the  traveller  with  attention,  but  replied  that  he 
would  be  unable  to  render  him  much  assistance. 
There  was  feud  between  the  people  of  Kaarta  and  of 
Bambarra,  the  adjoining  kingdom ;  and  hence  it  was 
impossible  that  the  king  of  the  former  country  could 
at  present  enter  into  friendly  communication  with  one 
who  was  his  enemy.  King  Daisey  strongly  recom- 
mended Mr.  Park  to  return  by  the  way  he  had  come ; 
but  as  the  traveller  expressed  a  firm  determination 
not  to  do  this,  the  king  advised,  as  the  next  best 
course  to  adopt,  that  Park  should  proceed  to  Bam- 
barra by  a  circuitous  route  through  the  Moorish 
territory  of  Ludamar.  It  was  identically  the  same 
path  which  led  Major  Houghton  to  his  death ;  but  as 
he  had  no  other  choice,  Park  determined  to  follow  it 
also,  and  on  February  the  13th  set  out  from  Kemmoo, 
accompanied  by  three  of  King  Daisey 's  sons. 

Shortly  before  entering  Jarra,  the  frontier  town  of 
Ludamar,  Park  witnessed  an  episode  of  curious  and 
painful  interest.  A  native  herdsman  had  been 
wounded  by  a  Moorish  robber,  and  was  being  slowly 
led  home,  supported  on  his  horse  by  a  number  of 
comrades.  In  front  of  the  little  cortege  walked  the 
young  man's  mother,  wild  with  grief,  clapping  with 
her  hands,  and  singing  the   praises  of  her  son — his 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  35 

virtues,  gifts,  and  graces.  "  Ee  maffo  fonio  ! "  (He 
never  told  a  lie.)  "  Ee  maffo  fonio  ;  abada "  (He 
never  told  a  lie ;  no,  never  !),  she  cried.  The  wounded 
youth  was  carried  into  her  hut  and  placed  upon  a 
mat — a  crowd  of  his  friends  gathering  around  the 
white,  and  bewailing  the  mishap  with  pitiable  howling 
and  moaning. 

Mr.  Park  being  requested  to  examine  the  young 
man's  wound,  did  so,  and  found  that  the  bone  of  the 
leg  had  sustained  a  serious  fracture,  which  would  ne- 
cessitate the  amputation  of  the  limb,  if  there  was  to 
be  any  hope  of  saving  the  lad's  life.  This  the  boy's 
relatives  and  friends  would  not  hear  of,  regarding  it 
as  an  act  of  unheard-of  cruelty ;  and  the  sufferer  died 
the  same  evening. 

On  the  18th  Park  and  his  companions  passed  the 
village  of  Simbing,  a  place  which  must  have  had  pain- 
ful associations  for  the  traveller;  for  it  was  from  here 
that  his  gallant  predecessor,  Major  Houghton,  dated 
his  last  letter — written  in  pencil — to  Dr.  Laidley. 
Here  Mr.  Park  heard  the  full  particulars  of  Major 
Houghton's  death  (a  brief  account  of  which  has 
already  been  given),  and  was  shown  from  a  distance 
the  very  spot  where  the  traveller's  body  had  been 
left  a  prey  to  the  vulture  and  the  jackal. 

On  his  arrival  at  Jarra — a  considerable  town  situ- 
ated among  rocky  hills,  substantially  built  of  stone 
and  clay,  and  inhabited  by   negroes   subject   to   the 


36  PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 

Moors — Park  sent  forward  to  Ali,  the  ruling  chief  of 
Ludamar,  a  propitiatory  present  consisting  of  cotton 
clothing.  At  Deena,  the  next  large  town  at  which 
the  traveller  halted,  he  had  his  first  experience  of  the 
inhospitable  and  insulting  treatment  of  which  he  was 
to  have  only  too  many  examples  during  his  sojourn 
among  the  Moors. 

A  crowd  collected  about  the  hut  in  which  he  was 
lodging,  and  forthwith  began  to  yell,  hiss,  and  abuse 
the  unfortunate  white  man  by  every  means  they 
could  devise,  even  to  the  length  of  spitting  in  his 
face.  As  a  last  method  of  rousing  and  if  possible 
enraging  their  victim,  they  reviled  him  for  being  a 
Christian,  and  finally  proceeded  to  strip  him  of  every- 
thing of  value  which  he  possessed. 

Proceeding  still  patiently  on  his  journey,  Park  next 
passed  through  Sampaka  and  Samee,  the  latter  a 
negro  village,  where  he  once  more  met  with  the  hos- 
pitable entertainment  which  he  so  often  received  at 
the  hands  of  the  negroes,  and  which  so  agreeably  con- 
trasted with  his  treatment  by  the  Moors.  The  dooty, 
or  chief  man  of  Samee,  killed  two  fat  sheep  in  the 
white  man's  honour,  and  liberally  feasted  him  and  his 
companions. 

Refreshed  in  body  and  cheered  in  spirit  by  the 
timely  and  gentle  ministrations  of  these  simple 
people,  Mr.  Park  was  indulging  the  hope  that  he  had 
nothing   further   to    fear   from   the   Moors,   and   was 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  37 

already  dreaming  of  a  successful  and  glorious  issue  to 
his  journey,  when  hopes  and  dreams  were  alike  rudely 
dispelled  by  the  sudden  appearance  at  the  door  of  his 
hut  of  a  party  of  Moors,  who  came  to  convey  the 
white  man  to  Ali's  camp  at  Benowm.  Park  narrates 
that  he  was  struck  speechless  with  surprise  and  fear 
at  the  sight  of  these  men — a  condition  of  mind  that 
was  little  allayed  by  their  declaration  that  he  had 
nothing  to  dread,  and  that  their  visit  had  been  insti- 
gated chiefly  by  the  desire  of  Queen  Fatima,  Ali's 
wife,  to  make  acquaintance  with  the  white  man. 

On  March  12th,  Park  and  his  escort  reached  Be- 
nowm, which  was  little  else  than  a  collection  of  mean- 
looking  tents,  confusedly  scattered  over  a  large  area, 
and  among  which  herds  of  cattle,  camels,  and  goats 
roamed  at  will.  As  the  party  entered  the  camp,  Park, 
being  exceedingly  thirsty,  endeavoured  to  obtain  a 
little  water.  He  was  at  length  successful.  But  imme- 
diately the  people  at  the  wells  beheld  the  white  man, 
they  flung  down  their  water-pitchers ;  men,  women, 
and  children  came  running  towards  him ;  and  Mr. 
Park  presently  found  himself  surrounded  by  so  great 
a  crowd  that  he  was  unable  to  move  this  way  or  that. 
Forthwith  began  a  process  of  petty  annoyance  of  the 
stranger  :  one  pulled  off  his  hat ;  others  tugged  at 
his  coat ;  others  insisted  on  examining  his  waistcoat 
buttons ;  and  another,  with  significant  threats,  made 
him  repeat   after   him  the  words,  "  Ilia  la  el  Allah, 


38  PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 

Mahomet  rasowl  alabi "  (There  is  but  one  God,  and 
Mohammed  is  his  prophet). 

When  the  traveller  was  at  length  brought  before 
Ali,  he  found  that  prince  seated  on  a  leather  cushion, 
engaged  in  trimming  his  moustache,  while  a  female 
slave  held  up  a  looking-glass  before  him.  The  king 
was  an  elderly  man,  with  a  flowing  white  beard,  and 
a  not  very  pleasant  type  of  countenance,  by  reason  of 
its  sullen  and  angry  expression.  After  looking  fixedly 
at  the  stranger,  he  asked  him  if  he  could  speak  Arabic; 
and  on  Park's  replying  that  he  could  not,  he  seemed 
greatly  surprised,  and  resumed  his  former  silence. 

The  ladies  of  the  court,  however,  showed  much 
greater  inquisitiveness — putting  innumerable  questions 
to  the  white  man ;  minutely  examining  his  clothes ; 
making  him  unbutton  his  vest,  that  they  might  see 
the  whiteness  of  his  skin ;  and,  finally,  counting  his 
fingers  and  toes,  in  doubt,  presumably,  whether  he  had 
the  same  number  as  themselves. 

At  sunrise  next  day,  Ali  visited  the  traveller  in  his 
tent,  to  inform  him  that  a  hut  had  been  made  ready 
for  him.  Mr.  Park  found  his  new  lodging  cool  and 
comfortable  enough ;  but  he  had  barely  taken  pos- 
session of  it  when  he  was  once  more  assailed  by  a 
crowd  of  Moors,  and  -the  persecution  of  the  hapless 
white  man  was  renewed  with  greater  persistence  than 
ever.  All  that  day,  from  noon  till  night,  he  was 
occupied  in  a  series  of  dressings  and  undressings  for 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  39 

the  satisfaction  and  amusement  of  his  visitors,  being 
supported  under  this  disagreeable  and  trying  ordeal 
only  by  a  slight  supper  of  kouskous  and  salt  and 
water,  the  only  meal  that  was  provided  him  during  the 
day.  The  traveller  had  a  comparatively  quiet  night's 
rest ;  but  with  daybreak  began  the  same  round  of 
indignity  and  annoyance.  "  It  is  impossible,"  Mr.  Park 
writes,  "  to  describe  the  behaviour  of  a  people  who 
study  mischief  as  a  science,  and  exult  in  the  miseries 
and  misfortunes  of  their  fellow-creatures." 

In  devising  methods  of  persecuting  their  helpless 
victim,  the  Moors  certainly  displayed  an  ingenuity 
worthy  of  a  better  cause.  The  means  they  discovered 
and  devised  of  rendering  Mr.  Park's  life  miserable  were 
innumerable.  No  one  was  so  degraded  in  this  bar- 
barous society  but  he  might  bait,  bully,  and  insult 
the  white  man  with  impunity. 

His  captors  seemed  to  think,  or  at  least  pretended 
to,  that  the  white  man  was  a  master  of  all  trades; 
for  at  one  time  he  was  bidden  to  perform  the  duties 
of  a  gunsmith,  and  mend  a  gun  for  one  of  the  king's 
sons,  and  at  another  time  those  of  a  barber.  He  was 
not,  however,  asked  a  second  time  to  fill  the  latter 
office,  for  on  his  first  occasion  of  doing  so  he  managed 
to  give  the  person  being  operated  on  (the  boy-prince 
of  Ludamar)  an  unmistakable  proof  of  his  being  a 
novice  in  the  craft — namely,  a  cut  on  the  side  of  the 
head ;  whereat  the  king,  concluding  that  the  head  of 


40  PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 

his  son  and  heir  was  in  the  wrong  place,  brought  Mr. 
Park's  performance  to  an  abrupt  conclusion. 

An  object  of  special  curiosity,  and  presently  of 
superstitious  awe  to  the  Moors,  was  the  traveller's 
pocket-compass.  Ali  himself  was  most  anxious  to 
have  the  mystery  of  the  needle  explained  to  him — 
why  it  always  pointed  to  the  north,  to  the  Great 
Desert.  Unable  to  devise  any  other  answer  that 
would  have  met  the  case,  Mr.  Park  told  the  king  that 
his  mother  dwelt  beyond  the  Sahara  Desert,  and  that 
as  long  as  she  lived  the  needle  of  the  compass  would 
point  towards  her  home,  thus  serving  as  a  guide  to 
direct  him  to  her ;  and  that  when  she  died  it  would 
point  to  her  grave — a  harmless  fabrication  which  got 
the  traveller  out  of  his  difficulty,  for  it  would  have 
been  futile  to  have  attempted  any  scientific  explana- 
tion of  the  matter.  The  king  now  regarded  the  com- 
pass with  added  astonishment  and  awe,  and  after 
turning  it  this  way  and  that  in  his  hands,  following 
the  motions  of  the  needle  with  a  face  of  silent  won- 
der, he  returned  the  little  instrument  to  its  owner, 
with  every  sign  of  fear  at  retaining  any  longer  in  his 
keeping  so  magical  and  potent  a  charm. 

Almost  every  day  brought  the  captive  white  man 
new  hardships  and  annoyances,  and  thus  a  whole 
month  dragged  wearily  along.  Every  sunset  he  ea- 
gerly welcomed  the  night,  for  then  only  was  there 
respite  for  him  from  the  persecutions  of  his  oppressors. 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  41 

He  was  insufficiently  fed,  and  on  the  coarsest  fare — a 
bowl  of  kouskous  with  a  little  salt  and  water  consti- 
tuting his  single  daily  meal.  But  he  suffered  most 
of  all  from  thirst,  for  it  was  the  dry  season,  and  the 
heat  was  intense. 

One  evening,  having  in  vain  tried  to  procure  a 
drink  in  the  camp,  Park,  feverish  from  thirst,  wan- 
dered out  into  the  night,  if  by  any  chance  he  might 
obtain  a  draught  of  water  at  the  wells,  which  were 
about  half  a  mile  distant  from  the  town.  Having 
accosted  an  old  man  who  was  busy  drawing  water, 
and  requested  that  he  might  be  allowed  to  drink,  the 
man  was  at  first  about  to  hand  him  his  bucket,  when, 
suddenly  calling  to  mind  that  he  was  a  Christian,  he 
emptied  the  contents  of  the  bucket  into  a  common 
cow-trough,  and  bade  the  white  man  drink  from  it. 
It  was  not  a  time  to  regard  niceties,  and  the  fever- 
parched  white  man  was  fain  to  thrust  his  head  be- 
tween those  of  two  cows,  and  take  a  long  and  deep 
draught  from  the  rude  trough. 

All  this  time  Park  had  seen  nothing  of  Queen 
Fatima,  who  was  the  ostensible  cause  of  his  being 
brought  to  Benowm  and  detained  so  long  there ;  but 
at  last  he  had  an  interview  with  the  Moorish  princess, 
at  her  residence  in  Bubaker.  She  was  a  woman  of 
enormous  size — corpulence  being  regarded  among  the 
Moors  as  the  most  distinguished  mark  of  female 
beauty — with  long  black  hair.      At  first  she  showed 


42  PARK 'S  FIRST  JO  URNE Y. 

some  signs  of  being  scandalized  at  the  close  proximity 
of  a  Christian,  but  presently  received  Mr.  Park  gra- 
ciously enough,  questioned  him  about  his  native  land, 
and  finally  dismissed  him  with  a  present  of  a  bowl 
of  milk. 

Again  :  it  is  worthy  of  being  noted,  that  even  among 
the  Moors,  whose  treatment  of  Park  was  characterized 
by  universal  harshness  and  oppression,  the  only  real 
kindness  that  he  received  was  from  a  woman,  Fatima 
continuing  to  befriend  him  to  the  end.  The  queen 
persuaded  her  husband  to  allow  the  traveller  to  return 
with  him  to  Jarra,  Mr.  Park  being  at  this  time,  it  will 
be  remembered,  at  Bubaker. 

After  a  few  days'  stay  at  Jarra,  Ali  returned  to 
Bubaker  to  celebrate  an  approaching  feast,  and  Mr. 
Park  was  left  to  await  the  king's  return.  On  the 
14th  of  June,  news  was  brought  to  Jarra  that  King 
Daisey,  with  whom  Ali  was  at  war,  was  about  to  at- 
tack the  camp.  On  the  26th,  information  arrived 
that  Daisey  had  captured  Simbing,  and  would  be  in 
Jarra  immediately.  Whereupon  one-half  of  the  in- 
habitants abandoned  the  town,  and  set  out  for  Bam- 
barra. 

In  the  general  confusion  which  now  ensued  in  Jarra, 
Park  resolved  to  attempt  his  escape.  Mounting  his 
horse,  and  throwing  a  bag  of  corn  across  his  saddle, 
he  joined  the  retreating  crowd  of  townspeople,  and 
mingled  in  the  hurrying  throng  of  men,  women,  and 


MUNGO       PARK'S       FIRST       SIGHT       OF       THE       NIGER. 


Page  4g. 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  45 

children,  cattle,  sheep,  and  goats.  The  panic-stricken 
band  of  refugees,  abandoning  their  homes  and  pos- 
sessions, presented  a  sad  and  pitiful  sight,  which  even 
Mr.  Park,  much  as  he  had  suffered  at  the  hands  of  the 
Moors,  could  not  help  compassionating. 

A  crisis  had  arrived  in  Park's  life.  Now,  if  ever, 
an  opportunity  for  escape  from  the  Moors  seemed  to 
present  itself.  "  I  was  again,"  he  writes,  "  either  to 
taste  the  blessings  of  freedom  or  languish  out  my  days 
in  captivity."  Taking  with  him  a  small  bundle,  and 
bidding  farewell  to  the  negro  Johnson,  who  had  been 
so  long  his  faithful  companion,  he  escaped  by  night 
while  his  guards  were  asleep.  He  had  placed  some 
distance  between  himself  and  his  captors,  and  had 
begun  to  indulge  a  feeling  of  security,  when  he  heard 
a  hallooing  behind  him :  three  horsemen  galloped  up, 
caught  hold  of  his  horse,  and  told  him  he  must  return 
with  them  to  Ali. 

This  unlooked-for  downfall  of  all  his  hopes  affected 
Park  with  the  indifference  and  apathy  of  despair.  But 
things  were  not  so  bad  as  they  at  first  seemed.  The 
three  men  had  really  no  authority  from  Ali  to  appre- 
hend Mr.  Park,  and  had  followed  him  merely  with  the 
object  of  plunder.  Having  accomplished  their  pur- 
pose, they  suffered  the  traveller  to  go  free ;  and  Mr. 
Park,  his  spirits  again  rising  at  having  escaped  with 
his  life,  turned  his  face  eastward,  and  presently  en- 
tered the  forest. 


46  PARK 'S  FIRST  JO  URNE  Y. 

Great  as  was  Mr.  Park's  joy  in  the  feeling  of  being 
once  more  a  free  man,  he  soon  became  alive  to  the 
gravity  of  his  situation.  He  was  without  food  and 
without  water,  faint  from  hunger  and  parched  with 
thirst,  while  his  horse  was  in  much  the  same  condi- 
tion, becoming  presently  too  weak  to  support  his 
rider's  weight. 

Park  now  sank  into  a  state  of  such  extreme  pros- 
tration that  his  consciousness  for  a  time  left  him,  and 
he  fell  into  a  faint.  By-and-by,  however,  he  recov- 
ered, and  determining  to  make  one  more  effort  for  his 
life,  pushed  wearily  but  patiently  on,  in  the  hope  of 
reaching  some  pool  of  water — his  only  chance  of  restor- 
ing his  exhausted  energies.  Presently  he  beheld  a 
flash  of  lightning,  followed  by  a  second  and  a  third ; 
the  forest  began  to  shake  in  the  rising  wind,  and  soon 
a  few  heavy  rain-drops  pattered  down  on  the  trav- 
eller. For  upwards  of  an  hour  rain  fell  fast,  and  Mr. 
Park  succeeded  in  quenching  his  thirst  by  soaking  his 
clothes  and  then  sucking  them  dry. 

The  traveller  pushed  on,  but  it  was  not  long  ere 
he  was  again  suffering  from  thirst.  This  time  he  was 
relieved  more  sufficiently.  He  heard  a  loud  croaking 
of  frogs,  a  "heavenly  sound"  to  his  ears,  and  shortly 
thereafter  reached  a  shallow  muddy  pool,  at  which 
both  himself  and  his  horse  fully  quenched  their  thirst. 
On  the  same  day  he  reached  Shrilla,  a  Foulah  village, 
where  he  sought  entertainment  at  the  house  of  the 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  49 

dooty,  but  was  inhospitably  turned  from  the  door. 
At  some  little  distance,  spinning  cotton,  sat  an  old 
woman  at  the  entrance  of  her  hut.  This  kind  old 
creature  led  the  hungry  and  tired  traveller  into  her 
cabin,  set  food  before  him,  and  brought  corn  for  his 
horse ;  in  return  for  which  good  offices  Mr.  Park  made 
her  accept  one  of  his  handkerchiefs. 

On  July  the  15th  our  traveller  halted  at  Wawra, 
a  small  negro  town,  where,  being  greatly  fatigued, 
he  rested  a  while.  Resuming  his  journey,  he  passed 
through  several  other  negro  towns  and  villages,  trav- 
elling now  for  the  most  part  on  foot,  for  his  horse  had 
become  so  weak  that  his  master  forbore  making  any 
attempt  to  ride  him. 

As  Mr.  Park  approached  the  town  of  Sego,  visions 
of  the  Niger  so  filled  his  thoughts  and  his  imagination 
that  they  prevented  him  from  sleeping.  It  was  even- 
ing as  he  drew  near  the  town,  when,  gazing  about  him 
to  catch  sight  of  the  river,  he  heard  one  of  his  com- 
panions, who  consisted  of  Kaartan  natives,  call  out,  "Geo 
affilli !"  (See  the  water !)  And  directing  his  gaze  for- 
ward, he  beheld,  with  satisfaction  and  joy  that  may 
be  imagined,  the  great  object  of  his  mission — "  the 
long -sought -for,  majestic  Niger,  glittering  to  the 
morning  sun,  as  broad  as  the  Thames  at  Westmin- 
ster, and  flowing  slowly  to  the  eastward."  The  dis- 
coverer of  the  great  river,  with  mingled  emotions 
of  elation  and   thankfulness,  hurried  forward  to  the 

(94)  4 


50  PARK 'S  FIRST  JO URNE Y. 

bank,  bent  down  and  drank  of  the  stream,  and  then 
offered  up  a  heartfelt  prayer  of  gratitude  to  God, 
who  had  thus  far  crowned  his  enterprise  with  signal 
success. 

Sego,  the  chief  town  of  the  kingdom  of  Bambarra, 
Park  found  to  consist  of  four  separate  and  distinct 
divisions — two  situated  on  the  northern,  and  two  on 
the  southern  bank  of  the  river.  The  place  contained 
as  many  as  thirty  thousand  inhabitants,  and,  for  a  re- 
mote town  in  the  heart  of  Africa,  presented  a  wonderful 
aspect  of  substantiality  and  prosperity.  Some  of  the 
houses  were  of  two  stories,  and  a  number  had  their 
walls  white-washed;  the  city  streets  were  comparatively 
broad,  and  Moorish  mosques  rose  in  every  direction. 
The  river  was  thronged  with  canoes,  the  thoroughfares 
of  the  town  crowded  with  foot-passengers,  and  the 
neighbouring  country  was  so  well  cultivated  as  to 
excite  considerable  surprise  in  Mr.  Park's  mind. 

Owing  to  the  crowd  of  people  desirous  of  being 
conveyed  across  the  river,  Mr.  Park  could  not  at  once 
obtain  a  ferryman.  While  waiting  his  turn,  seated 
on  the  bank  of  the  river,  he  was  informed  that  the 
king  of  Sego  had  refused  to  allow  him  to  cross  the 
river  until  he  made  known  his  object  in  visiting  the 
country.  A  good  deal  discouraged  by  this  rebuff,  the 
traveller  betook  himself  to  a  village  at  some  distance 
from  the  town,  where  the  king  had  bidden  him  take 
up  his  abode  until  further  instructions. 


THE       NEGRO      SONG. 


Page  S3. 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  53 

No  one  in  the  village  would  receive  the  traveller 
beneath  his  roof,  and  Mr.  Park  remained  all  day  with- 
out food  seated  beneath  a  tree.  The  wind  increased, 
there  was  every  appearance  of  heavy  rain,  and  the 
prospect  of  spending  a  night  out-of-doors  was  a  suf- 
ficiently dreary  one,  especially  as  the  surrounding- 
country  was  infested  with  wild  animals. 

At  this  juncture — when  Park  saw  nothing  before 
him  but  a  night  spent  under  these  cheerless  condi- 
tions— there  occurred  what  was  at  once  perhaps 
the  most  pleasing  and  not  the  least  pathetic  episode 
in  all  his  African  experiences.  As  it  was  growing 
dusk,  a  kind  negro  woman,  returning  from  "the  fields, 
approached  the  faint  and  weary  white  man,  and 
revealing  in  her  looks  her  deep  compassion  for  his 
sad  plight,  bade  him  follow  her,  while  she  herself 
carried  his  saddle  and  bridle.  When  she  had  seated 
Park  on  a  mat  in  her  hut,  she  trimmed  a  lamp, 
broiled  a  fish  on  the  fire,  and  placed  it  before  him 
as  his  supper.  The  rest  of  the  household  had  mean- 
while been  watching  the  stranger  with  looks  of  won- 
dering astonishment,  but  now  resumed  their  occupation 
of  spinning,  which  was  continued  far  into  the  night. 
As  they  worked,  the  dark-skinned  maidens  sang  to 
cheer  their  labour,  and  presently  one  improvised  a 
song  of  which  the  white  stranger  was  himself  the 
theme.  The  air  was  sweet  and  plaintive,  and  the 
words  touching  in  their  naturalness   and   simplicity. 


54  PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 

IRegro  Bong  from  /l&r.  park's  travels.* 


Adagio 


roared,     the  rain  fell       fast,      The  white  man  yield  -  ed   to      the      blast ;       He  sat    him 


down        be-neath  our     tree,     For  wear -y,       sad,    and  faint    was     he:       And  ah, 


wife,    no  moth  ■  er's  care,  For  him    the  milk     or  corn  pre-pare,  For  him  the   milk     or  corn  pre- 

1     -N- 


The  words  and  music  of  the  above  song  are  taken  from  the  original  quarto  edition 
of  Park's  travels.    The  words  are  by  the  Duchess  of  Devonshire,  the  music  by  G.  G. 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 


55 


i^s 


-?s^^j±^^^m 


pare.     The  white  man    shall       our  pi  -  ty       share;      A -las.'        no    wife        or  moth-er's 


$t±=j=± 


3=3=^P 


^4.1-l.UJ-W 


PS 


§¥#Pil¥f 


JVii 


fe^^yE^fe^i 


3*=^ 


care     For  him    the  milk      or  com  pre-pare,  For  him   the  milk    or  corn  pre  -  pare. 


$^m 


^M 


■SE!E^ 


E*E 


<§'-. 


w 


The  loud  wind  roared,  the  rain  fell 

fast, 
The  white  man  yielded  to  the  blast ; 
He  sat  him  down  beneath  our  tree, 
For  weary,  sad,  and  faint  was  he : 
And  ah,  no  wife,  no  mother's  care, 
For  him  the  milk  or  corn  prepare. 

CHORUS. 

The  white  man  shall  our  pity  share ; 
Alas  !  no  wife  or  mother's  care 
For  him  the  milk  or  corn  prepare. 


The  storm  is  o'er,  the  tempest  past, 
And  Mercy's  voice  has  hushed  the 

blast; 
The  wind  is  heard  in  whispers  low, 
The  white  man  far  away  must  go  ; 
But  ever  in  his  heart  must  bear 
Remembrance  of  the  negro's  care. 

CHORUS. 

Go,  white  man,  go — but  with  thee  bear 
The  negro's  wish,  the  negro's  prayer, 
Remembrance  of  the  negro's  care. 


In  perusing  Mr.  Park's  journal  no  wonder  is  raised 
in  the  reader's  mind,  at  this  point,  by  the  statement 
that  the  traveller  was  so  keenly  affected  by  the  above 
episode  that,  weary  though  he  was,  sleep  for  long  fled 

Ferrari,  a  well-known  composer  of  the  day,  who  was  thought  to  have  succeeded  admir- 
ably in  retaining  the  simplicity  and  plaintiveness  of  the  original  melody,  while  giving 
it  more  body  and  shape. 


56  PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 

from  his  eyes.  To  our  thinking,  there  is  an  idyllic 
simplicity  and  even  grace  about  the  whole  circum- 
stances of  the  incident  quite  worthy  to  awaken  the 
inspiration  of  the  poet ;  while  it  is  pleasing  to  con- 
template in  another  and  different  light,  as  exemplify- 
ing how  universal  is  the  kindly  bond  of  humanity 
that  links  the  race  together.  Here  surely  was  an 
instance  of  the  "  one  touch  of  nature  "  that  "  makes 
the  whole  world  kin." 

The  king  of  Sego's  treatment  of  Park  was,  on  the 
whole,  liberal  and  considerate.  He  did  not  permit 
him  to  remain  longer  at  Sego  than  two  days ;  but  in 
adopting  this  course  he  was  greatly  influenced,  Mr. 
Park  believed,  by  fear  of  the  Moors.  The  traveller 
was,  however,  presented  by  the  king  with  a  bag  con- 
taining five  thousand  cowries,  and  provided  with  a 
guide  as  far  as  Sansanding,  his  next  halting-place. 
Sansanding  was  found  to  be  a  place  of  some  import- 
ance, largely  frequented  by  Moorish  traders  in  beads 
and  coral,  gold-dust  and  cotton  cloth.  Here  the 
traveller  was  first  mistaken  for  some  one  else,  and 
afterwards  treated  with  much  discourtesy  and  rude- 
ness. The  Moors  gathered  about  him  in  great  crowds, 
and  insisted  that  he  should  accompany  them  to  the 
mosque,  and  join  in  the  Mohammedan  worship.  Mr. 
Park  managed  to  escape  this  ordeal,  but  was  com- 
pelled to  mount  a  high  seat  in  front  of  the  mosque, 
in  order  that  he  might  be  easily  seen  by  everybody. 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  57 

Then  the  rabble  crowded  into  the  hut  in  which  the 
traveller  had  taken  up  his  lodging,  for  the  purpose  of 
watching  him  at  his  evening  devotions  and  seeing  him 
"  eat  eggs."  Seven  raw  hen-eggs  having  been  set 
before  him,  he  had  considerable  difficulty  in  making 
it  clear  to  the  people  that  it  was  not  the  universal 
custom  among  Europeans  to  eat  eggs  uncooked — an 
idea  which  seemed  rooted  in  their  minds.  To  the 
wish  of  his  visitors,  that  he  should  perform  his  de- 
votions before  them,  he  did  not  think  fit  to  yield. 

From  his  landlord  at  Sansanding,  however,  the 
traveller  received  hospitable  enough  treatment,  which 
he  in  part  repaid  by  writing  out  for  the  old  man  a 
saphic  or  charm,  which  the  latter  was  very  anxious 
to  obtain.  "  If  a  Moor's  saphic  is  good,"  said  he, 
"a  white  man's  must  needs  be  better."  Whereupon 
Mr.  Park  wrote  out  the  charm  of  greatest  virtue  with 
which  he  was  acquainted — the  Lord's  Prayer. 

Quitting  Sansanding,  Park  passed  through  Nyara 
and  Nyamee,  and  presently  his  route  again  led  through 
the  forest.  He  was  riding  slowly  on,  his  horse  being 
greatly  fatigued,  when  his  guide  suddenly  exclaimed, 
"  Wara  billi  billi "  (A  very  large  lion) ;  and  again, 
"  Soubah  an  Allahi "  (God  preserve  us).  The  traveller 
looked  quickly  round,  and  beheld  a  large  red  lion 
couching  among  the  bushes  a  little  way  off  from  the 
track  he  was  pursuing.  Mr.  Park  feared  every 
moment  that  the  lion  would  spring  upon  him  ;  but  no 


58  PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 

such  danger  overtook  him — the  creature  suffering  him 
and  his  companion  to  pass  quietly  on. 

At  this  stage  of  his  journey  the  traveller  suffered 
much  from  the  attacks  of  mosquitoes,  and  passed 
night  after  night  without  obtaining  sleep,  engaged  in 
a  vain  attempt  to  keep  at  bay  the  countless  swarms  of 
these  remorseless  insects.  But  a  worse  misfortune 
befell  him  in  the  necessity  he  was  under  of  at  length 
abandoning  his  horse,  so  long  the  faithful  companion 
of  his  wanderings  and  the  patient  sharer  of  his  every 
hardship.  The  poor  animal  had  become  too  weak  to 
proceed  a  yard  further.  All  that  Park  could  do  was 
to  place  a  bundle  of  grass  before  him  and  continue 
his  journey  on  foot,  heavy  at  heart  for  the  loss  of  his 
horse,  and  with  a  dreary  foreboding  that  a  similar 
fate — death  in  the  wilderness — awaited  himself. 

On  reaching  Kea,  a  small  fishing  village,  Park 
embarked  on  the  Niger  in  a  canoe,  and  presently 
arrived  at  Moorzan,  a  town  on  the  north  bank  of  the 
river,  whence  he  crossed  over  to  Silla.  Here,  with 
much  difficulty,  he  obtained  lodging  at  the  house 
of  the  dooty,  and  on  the  same  night  of  his  arrival 
in  the  town  was  prostrated  with  a  sharp  attack  of 
fever. 

Park's  position  was  now  a  grave  one.  He  was 
without  clothing  and  without  food,  and  possessed  no 
means  of  procuring  either.  He  was  debilitated  by 
frequent  sickness,  and  by  the  long  periods  of  fasting 


A      LION       IN       THE       WAY. 


P"gt  S7- 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  61 

which  he  had  from  time  to  time  had  to  undergo.  The 
difficulties  of  pushing  his  way  further  eastward  were 
more  than  he  could  hope  to  overcome.  The  rainy- 
season  had  already  begun ;  in  a  little  while  the  low 
grounds  would  be  nothing  else  than  marshes,  and  all 
progress,  save  by  water,  impossible.  The  few  cowries 
still  remaining  to  the  traveller,  from  the  king  of  Sego's 
present,  were  quite  insufficient  to  hire  a  canoe  for  any 
length  of  time,  and  to  trust  to  the  good-will  of  the 
Moors  for  being  forwarded  on  his  way,  Park  knew, 
from  painful  experience,  to  be  worse  than  vain.  After 
long  and  anxious  pondering  of  the  question,  he  con- 
cluded that  the  only  course  left  to  him,  if  he  was  ever 
again  to  reach  the  coast  a  living  man,  was  to  turn  his 
face  westward ;  and  no  reader  of  his  journal  will  for  a 
moment  doubt  the  wisdom  of  his  decision,  or  dream  of 
imputing  a  thought  of  faint-heartedness  to  the  trav- 
eller for  making  it. 

Park  now  began  his  return  journey  westward.  At 
Modiboo  an  unexpected  pleasure  awaited  him  in  the 
recovery  of  his  horse,  which  had  been  found  by  the 
dooty  of  the  place  and  restored  to  comparative  strength. 
The  traveller  set  out  from  Modiboo,  driving  his  horse 
before  him.  The  country  was  now  little  better  than 
a  swamp,  and  Mr.  Park  had  to  wade  for  miles  to- 
gether up  to  his  knees  in  water.  Twice  his  horse 
stuck  fast  in  the  mud,  and  was  only  disembedded 
with    much    difficulty.       One    morning   the   traveller 


62  PARK 'S  FIRST  JO URJYE Y. 

counted  fourteen  native  huts  that  had  been  under- 
mined and  wrecked  since  the  rains  had  set  in. 

Mr.  Park's  reception  at  the  several  towns  through 
which  he  now  passed  was  the  reverse  of  encouraging. 
The  cause  of  this  he  was  not  long  in  discovering.  A 
report  had  spread  that  he  had  come  to  Bambarra  as  a 
spy,  and  he  was  accordingly  everywhere  shunned  and 
mistrusted.  On  his  arrival  at  Sansanding,  even  Counti 
Mamadi,  who,  as  he  himself  records,  had  received  him 
so  kindly  on  his  eastward  journey,  now  gave  him  but 
a  cold  welcome,  and  informed  him  that  the  king  of 
Sego  had  sent  after  him  to  bring  him  back.  Finally, 
Counti  Mamadi  advised  Park  to  leave  Sansanding 
early  in  the  morning,  and  on  no  account  to  visit 
Diggani  or  any  town  near  Sego. 

Notwithstanding  this  caution,  Park  halted  on 
August  11th  at  a  small  village  within  a  short  distance 
of  the  capital,  where,  however,  the  critical  nature  of 
his  position  being  impressed  upon  him  more  strongly 
than  ever,  he  resolved  to  avoid  Sego  altogether.  Ac- 
cordingly, mounting  his  horse,  he  struck  into  the 
swamps  and  forest  again,  and  set  his  face  due  west- 
ward. More  than  once  he  had  half  resolved  upon 
swimming  the  Niger,  and  making  for  Cape  Coast  to 
the  south,  but  finally  judged  that  he  should  carry  out 
the  object  of  his  expedition  more  closely  if  he  held  on 
in  a  westerly  direction,  and  sought  to  determine  how 
far  the  Niger  was  navigable  at  that  part  of  its  course. 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  65 

Mr.  Park's  journey  continued  under  difficulties.  He 
suffered  from  scarcity  of  food,  and  from  the  toil  and 
fatigue  of  travelling  through  the  inundated  country. 
On  the  16th  of  August  he  passed  through  the  town 
of  Yamina.  This  he  found  to  be  a  place  of  consider- 
able importance ;  but  as  it  was  much  frequented  by 
the  Moors,  he  did  not  think  it  safe  to  lodge  in  it. 

On  August  the  18th  he  reached  a  narrow  but  rapid 
stream  which  he  at  first  thought  must  be  a  tributary 
of  the  Niger,  but  presently  discovered  to  be  a  distinct 
river.  He  entered  the  stream,  leading  his  horse,  and 
was  already  neck-deep  in  water,  when  a  voice  from 
the  bank  behind  him  loudly  called  upon  him  to  come 
back.  Turning  round,  Park  beheld  a  native,  who 
proceeded  to  inform  him  that  the  river  was  full  of 
alligators,  which  would  be  certain  to  devour  both  the 
traveller  and  his  horse  if  they  tried  to  swim  the 
river.  When  Mr.  Park  again  stood  on  the  bank,  the 
black  man,  in  great  astonishment  at  this  his  first 
sight  of  a  white  man,  exclaimed  in  a  low  voice,  "  God 
preserve  us  !  who  is  this  ?  "  Mr.  Park  addressed  the 
man  in  the  Bambarra  tongue,  which  seemed  to  re- 
assure him ;  for  he  promised  to  help  the  traveller  to 
cross  the  river.  A  canoe  was  procured,  and  in  a  short 
while  Mr.  Park  was  safely  landed  on  the  opposite 
bank. 

The  stranger's  good  offices  did  not  cease  here.  At 
Taffara,  Park,  being  unable  to  obtain  a  lodging,  was 

(94)  5 


66  PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 

seated  beneath  the  bentang  tree,  exposed  to  the  fierce 
violence  of  a  storm  that  was  then  raging,  when  his 
former  deliverer  came  up  and  shared  his  supper  with 
the  white  man.  He  would  have  invited  the  traveller 
into  the  hut  in  which  he  was  lodging;  but  being 
himself  only  a  guest,  he  had  not  the  authority.  The 
night  was  spent  by  Park  on  the  wet  grass  in  an  outer 
court. 

Mr.  Park  had  as  much  difficulty  in  procuring  food 
for  his  horse  as  for  himself.  At  the  village  of  Sooha, 
the  dooty  absolutely  refused  to  supply  him  with  a 
morsel  of  either,  whether  for  payment  or  charity. 
While  the  traveller  was  endeavouring  to  discover  a 
reason  for  the  man's  unusually  discourteous  and  rough 
bearing,  the  latter  ordered  a  slave  to  bring  a  hoe.  The 
slave  began  to  dig  a  hole ;  the  dooty  meanwhile  look- 
ing on,  and  muttering  such  sentences  as,  "  Dank  atoo  " 
(Good  for  nothing),  "  Jankra  lemen  "  (A  real  plague). 
When  the  slave  had  finished  his  work  he  departed  to 
the  village,  and  presently  returned,  carrying  the  dead 
body  of  a  boy.  In  great  surprise  Park  waited  for  the 
sequel.  The  slave,  roughly  lifting  the  naked  corpse, 
flung  it  into  the  pit  with  a  heartless  indifference  such 
as  Mr.  Park  had  never  hitherto  beheld  during  his 
travels.  While  the  man  threw  in  the  earth  over  the 
grave,  the  dooty  kept  repeating,  "  Naphula  attiniata  " 
(Money  lost),  which  left  little  doubt  in  Mr.  Park's 
mind    that    the   boy  had   been  a   slave.      This  was 


PARK 'S  FIRST  JO  URNE Y.  67 

perhaps  the  most  shocking  scene  witnessed  by  the 
traveller  in  Africa. 

Pursuing  his  route  along  the  bank  of  the  river,  he 
reached  towards  evening  Koolikorro,  a  place  of  some 
size,  the  inhabitants  of  which  traded  extensively  in 
salt.  Here  the  native  with  whom  he  lodged,  immedi- 
ately on  learning  that  the  stranger  was  a  Christian, 
proposed  that  Park  should  make  him  a  saphic  "to 
protect  him  from  wicked  men,"  promising  that  in 
return  he  would  prepare  for  his  guest  a  supper  of  rice. 
This  was  a  chance  of  a  good  meal  not  to  be  lightly 
regarded  by  the  half -famished  wanderer.  The  landlord 
brought  a  board  which  Mr.  Park  covered  with  writing 
from  top  to  bottom  on  both  sides.  What  he  wrote, 
on  this  occasion  of  charm-making,  is  not  recorded  in 
the  traveller's  journal ;  but  whatever  it  was,  it  seemed 
abundantly  to  satisfy  his  landlord,  who,  washing  off 
the  writing  on  the  board  into  a  cup  containing  a  little 
water,  and  murmuring  a  prayer  over  the  liquid,  drank 
it  at  a  draught,  afterwards  licking  the  board  dry,  that 
no  word  of  the  potent  charm  might  be  wasted.  That 
night  our  traveller  enjoyed  the  only  sufficient  meal 
and  good  sleep  he  had  had  for  many  days. 

On  the  23rd  of  August  Park  reached  Bammakoo, 
where  he  obtained  from  a  slave-merchant  information 
respecting  his  further  route  westward.  What  he 
learned  was  not  reassuring.  His  road  would  lead  him 
across    the    Joliba   at    a    town    where    it    would    be 


68  PARK 'S  FIRST  JO URNEY. 

impossible  to  procure  a  canoe  large  enough  to  convey 
his  horse  across  the  river.  Mr.  Park,  however,  had 
no  alternative  but  to  push  forward.  At  Kooma,  a 
secluded  and  picturesque  village,  he  was  most  hos- 
pitably entertained  by  the  simple  and  kind-hearted 
inhabitants,  who  brought  a  supper  of  corn  and  milk 
for  the  traveller,  and  provender  for  his  horse,  kindled 
his  fire,  and  provided  him  with  a  hut  for  the  night. 

Mr.  Park  left  Kooma  escorted  by  two  shepherds. 
Towards  noon  of  the  same  day  he  heard  a  noise  as 
of  people  shouting.  Riding  in  the  direction  whence 
the  sound  proceeded  he  beheld  a  man  seated  on  the 
stump  of  a  tree,  while  some  half-dozen  heads  were 
just  visible  among  the  grass.  The  traveller  took  the 
men  for  elephant-hunters,  but  they  proved  to  be 
robbers — and  of  the  most  pitiless  sort.  Resistance 
would  have  been  vain  and  probably  dangerous.  The 
traveller  was  stripped  of  everything  he  possessed,  and 
at  first  feared  that  he  would  be  left  literally  naked. 
But  a  spark  of  humanity  survived  even  in  the  breasts 
of  these  savage  banditti.  They  left  their  victim  the 
oldest  of  his  two  shirts,  a  pair  of  trowsers,  and  his  hat 
— for  the  recovery  of  which  latter  article  Mr.  Park 
was  no  doubt  very  thankful,  as  it  was  the  receptacle 
of  his  notes. 

This  incident  depressed  Park  more,  probably,  than 
any  hardship  he  had  yet  endured.  He  was  alone  in 
a  dreadful  wilderness,  almost  naked,  far  away  from 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  69 

all  help  from  his  own  countrymen,  with  savage  ani- 
mals on  every  side,  and  men  not  less  savage — a  com- 
bination of  adverse  circumstances  greater  than  he 
seemed  able  to  struggle  against.  Thoughts  of  death 
filled  his  mind ;  there  was  nothing  left  for  him  but 
to  lie  down  and  breathe  his  last. 

But  in  this  his  darkest  hour,  Park  records  that  he 
was  not  entirely  without  support  and  solace.  The 
thought  that  his  present  position  was  due  to  no  fault 
or  folly  of  his  own,  that  he  had  fulfilled  his  mission  to 
the  best  of  his  knowledge  and  ability,  and  that  his 
fate  was  even  now  in  the  hands  of  that  Providence 
who  could  protect  him  as  surely  in  a  strange  land  as 
in  his  own — these  reflections  came  to  sustain  him,  and 
prevented  any  feeling  of  bitterness  mingling  with  his 
depression. 

While  he  thus  sat  in  sad  contemplation  of  his  fate, 
a  trifling  circumstance  served  to  turn  the  current  of 
his  thoughts,  to  direct  them  into  a  more  cheerful 
channel,  and  finally  to  fill  his  heart  with  fresh  hope 
and  courage.  This  happy  reanimation  of  spirit  was 
caused  by  the  sight  of  a  simple  little  plant,  a  small 
moss  in  fructification,  the  exquisite  beauty  of  which 
had  power  to  move  the  admiration  of  the  traveller  in 
his  hour  of  deepest  languor.  Could  the  Being,  he 
thought,  who  created  this  little  plant,  tended  and 
nursed  it  to  perfection  in  this  remote  spot,  regard  with 
indifference  one  of  his  own  suffering  children,  made  in 


70  PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 

his  own  likeness  ?  Surely  not !  The  thought  forbade 
despair.  The  traveller  rose  from  the  ground,  and 
battling  down  his  hunger  and  fatigue,  pressed  onward 
in  the  hope  that  relief  would  yet  reach  him  before  it 
was  too  late.  And  he  was  not  disappointed.  Suffi- 
cient strength  remained  to  him  to  enable  him  to  reach 
Sibidooloo,  the  frontier  town  of  Manding,  at  sunset. 

In  reading  the  above  simple  but  affecting  incident, 
it  is  impossible  to  avoid  the  thought  of  how  a  man's 
favourite  study  may  sometimes  come  to  his  aid  in  the 
sorest  strait.  It  is  but  one  of  many  similar  instances 
on  record,  as  every  reader  of  travel  and  biography 
must  call  to  mind.  To  the  love  of  all  natural  beauties 
with  which  Park's  study  of  botany  had  inspired  him 
the  thoughts  raised  in  his  breast  by  the  sight  of  the 
little  flower  must  in  part  be  attributed  ;  for  it  is 
improbable  that  at  such  a  moment  a  simple  little 
moss-plant  would  have  discovered  all  its  delicate  grace 
to  an  ordinary  and  untrained  eye.  This  idea  takes 
nothing  from  the  moral  side  of  the  picture — the 
natural  and  devout  emotions  with  which  the  sight  of 
the  flower  filled  the  traveller's  heart. 

To  the  mansa  —  or  chief  man  —  of  Sibidooloo, 
Park  related  his  recent  adventures,  which  roused  in 
his  hearer's  breast  an  indignation  creditable  to  him. 
"  Sit  down,"  said  he ;  "  you  shall  have  everything 
restored  to  you. — Give  the  white  man  "  (to  an  attend- 
ant) "  a  draught  of  water  ;   and  with  the  first  light 


PA  RK  'S  FIRST  JO  URNE  Y.  71 

of  the  morning  go  over  the  hills,  and  inform  the 
dooty  of  Bammakoo  that  a  poor  white  man  —  the 
king  of  Bambarra's  stranger — has  been  robbed  by  the 
king  of  Fooladoo's  people." 

Park  remained  two  days  at  Sibidooloo,  and  no  news 
of  his  horse  and  clothes  having  reached  the  town 
during  that  time,  he  resumed  his  journey.  At  Wonda  he 
was  obliged  to  rest  as  long  as  nine  days,  being  stricken 
down  with  fever,  from  which  he  had  suffered  inter- 
mittently ever  since  the  rainy  season  had  set  in. 
Food  was  now  very  scarce  in  every  place  through 
which  the  traveller  passed,  painful  proofs  of  which  he 
witnessed  on  all  sides. 

During  his  stay  at  Wonda,  Park  recovered  his  horse 
and  clothes,  sent  on  by  the  mansa  of  Sibidooloo,  who 
had  thus  been  enabled  to  redeem  his  promise.  The 
traveller's  compass,  however,  was  so  much  broken  as  to 
be  rendered  useless;  and  his  horse  so  emaciated  that  he 
was  glad  to  be  able  to  leave  it  with  his  landlord,  who, 
he  felt  assured,  would  take  every  care  of  it. 

Park  was  but  partially  recovered  from  his  sickness 
when  he  resumed  his  march.  Passing  through  several 
other  villages  and  towns,  he  arrived  at  Kamalia,  where 
he  took  iip  his  residence  at  the  house  of  one  Karfa 
Taura,  his  acquaintance  with  whom  proved  of  great 
importance  to  the  traveller.  Karfa  Taura  was  a  slave- 
merchant,  and  at  the  time  of  Park's  arrival  at  Kamalia 
was  collecting  a  coffle  of  slaves  to  take  to  the  Gambia. 


72  PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 

The  traveller  now  saw  an  opportunity  of  obtaining  an 
escort  that  was  not  to  be  lost.  He  found  the  slave- 
merchant,  notwithstanding  the  nature  of  his  calling,  to 
be  a  man  of  an  exceedingly  reasonable  and  honest  dis- 
position. A  compact  was  concluded,  by  the  terms  of 
which  Karfa  Taura  was  to  allow  Mr.  Park  to  accom- 
pany him  to  the  Gambia,  supplying  him  with  all 
necessary  food  on  the  journey ;  and  in  return  for  his 
services  he  was  to  receive  the  price  of  one  slave. 

Karfa  Taura  could  not  start  on  his  journey  until 
the  rainy  season  was  fairly  over,  and  the  roads  in  a 
condition  for  travelling  by.  Thus  Mr.  Park  remained 
at  Kamalia  for  a  considerable  time;  and  though  during 
the  greater  part  of  his  sojourn  in  the  district  he  was 
prostrated  with  fever,  he  was  able  to  collect  a  great 
deal  of  information  in  regard  to  the  country  and  its 
inhabitants,  all  of  which  the  reader  will  find  detailed 
in  the  traveller's  journal. 

Nothing  could  exceed  the  kindness  and  attention 
bestowed  upon  Mr.  Park,  during  this  period,  by  Karfa 
Taura.  He  was  provided  with  a  comfortable  hut,  a 
mat-bed,  an  earthen  jar  for  water,  and  a  calabash 
cup ;  with  everything,  in  fact,  that  is  required  in  that 
simple  and  primitive  society.  Every  day  a  slave 
brought  him  firewood  and  water,  and  two  ample 
meals ;  and  every  day  he  was  visited  by  his  landlord 
in  person,  who  came  to  inquire  how  it  fared  with  the 
sick  white  man.     Thus,  when  all  but  overcome  by 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  73 

repeated  disaster,  hunger,  and  illness,  Mr.  Park  was 
succoured  and  delivered  by  this  benevolent  negro. 

At  length,  on  April  1 9  th,  Karfa  Taura  was  ready  to 
set  out  with  his  coffle  of  slaves — thirty-five  in  number. 
It  will  easily  be  understood  how  the  remainder  of  Mr. 
Park's  journey  was  beset  with  far  fewer  perils,  hard- 
ships, and  vicissitudes  than  the  first  portion  of  it  had 
been.  He  was  now  accompanied  by  a  strong  escort ; 
food  was  forthcoming  regularly  and  in  sufficient 
quantity ;  and  the  roads  no  longer  presented  the  same 
almost  insurmountable  obstacles  to  progress  which  they 
had  formerly  done.  The  Jallonka  wilderness  was 
that  part  of  the  route  which  proved  the  most  fatiguing 
and  the  most  dangerous ;  fatiguing  from  its  vastness 
and  the  density  of  the  forest,  and  dangerous  from  the 
number  of  wild  beasts  infesting  it. 

The  route  pursued  by  the  caravan  led  across  the 
Bafing  or  Black  River,  one  of  the  principal  branches 
of  the  Senegal.  This  stream  was  crossed  on  a  very 
curiously  constructed  bridge  of  bamboo — a  sort  of 
floating  bridge  formed  by  two  high  trees,  which,  when 
fastened  together  by  their  topmost  boughs,  stretched 
from  one  bank  of  the  river  to  the  other.  When  a  few 
trees  are  placed  in  this  position  and  laid  with  bamboos, 
the  whole  forms  a  gangway  sloping  down  from  each 
end  towards  the  middle.  Such  a  bridge  is  well 
adapted  to  a  stream  liable  to  be  flooded  every  season, 
since  it  can  be  so  quickly  and  easily  constructed. 


74  PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY. 

After  passing  through  many  towns  and  villages  the 
caravan  at  length  reached  the  Gambia,  and  on  the 
10th  of  June  1797  Mr.  Park  was  once  more  in 
Pisania,  where,  it  needs  not  to  be  said,  he  was  welcomed 
with  the  greatest  joy — not  the  less  keen  because  he 
had  been  almost  given  up  for  dead.  Dr.  Laidley  dis- 
charged the  traveller's  debt  to  Karfa  Taura  with  large 
interest,  giving  the  negro  twice  the  sum  agreed  upon. 
Though  Karfa  Taura  had  amply  deserved  this  liberal 
treatment,  his  kindness  towards  Mr.  Park  having 
continued  to  the  last,  he  was  greatly  overcome  by  the 
additional  recompense.  The  whole  European  life  at 
Pisania,  moreover,  made  a  manifest  impression  on  him: 
and  more  than  once  he  exclaimed  to  Mr.  Park,  with  a 
thoughtful  look  and  a  sigh  :  "  Fato  fing  inta  feng " 
(Black  men  are  nothing  ). 

Mr.  Park  reached  England  by  a  somewhat  indirect 
route,  embarking  in  an  American  ship,  the  Gharlestown, 
on  the  loth  of  June.  He  was  delayed  for  ten  days 
on  the  island  of  Antigua,  and  did  not  arrive  in 
England  until  the  end  of  November. 

The  pleasure  of  Mr.  Park's  friends,  and,  it  may  be 
said,  of  the  people  of  England  generally,  at  his  safe 
return,  hardly  exceeded  their  astonishment ;  for  all 
hopes  of  the  traveller  being  still  alive  were  beginning 
to  be  abandoned.  Two  years  had  passed  without  any 
word  of  him  having  reached  England.  As  may  be 
imagined,  the  interest  excited  by  the  story  he  had  to 


1        ^llP1!'1' 
ill  ' 


PARK'S  FIRST  JOURNEY.  77 

tell  was  very  great  among  almost  all  classes  of  the 
community.  The  African  Association  were  as  proud 
as  they  were  pleased  at  the  success  of  the  expedition 
which  had  been  originated  and  equipped  under  their 
auspices ;  and  the  general  public  were  eager  to  hear 
the  stirring  tale  of  travel,  adventure,  and  discovery. 

Park's  journey,  both  in  its  character  and  results,  was 
the  most  important  that  had  yet  been  accomplished. 
The  traveller  had  beheld  the  Niger,  and  had  definitely 
determined,  past  all  doubt  and  question,  the  direction 
of  the  great  river  for  a  large  portion  of  its  course. 
He  had  also  collected  a  mass  of  information  regarding 
Central  Africa,  which,  though  not  absolutely  trust- 
worthy, as  subsequent  discovery  has  proved,  as  far 
exceeded  in  accuracy  as  it  did  in  amount  the  work  of 
any  previous  discoverer. 


CHAPTER  III. 

park's  second  journey. 

Soon  after  arriving  in  England,  Park  set  about  the 
task  of  arranging  and  writing  the  journal  of  his 
travels — a  work  which  cost  him  much  time  and  pains. 

The  conditions  of  his  journey,  it  may  be  imagined, 
were  not  favourable  to  literary  composition,  and  the 
notes  made  on  the  way  were,  accordingly,  meagre  and 
disjointed ;  so  that  Park  had  to  rely  greatly  on  his 
memory,  which  was  fortunately  a  retentive  one.  The 
labour  of  authorship,  moreover,  was  one  which  he  had 
never  before  essayed,  and  composition  came  only  with 
pains.  But  he  was  rewarded  for  the  conscientious  care 
which  he  bestowed  upon  his  book  by  its  large  sale 
when  published ;  for  it  rapidly  won  its  way  in  the 
popular  favour,  and  brought  its  author  both  fame  and 
profit. 

Park  now  settled  down  into  private  life,  establishing 
himself  as  a  doctor  in  Peebles.  There  he  performed 
faithfully  and  diligently  the  usual  duties  of  a  country 
surgeon,  doing  much  hard  work  for  sufficiently  scanty 


PARK'S  SECOND  JOURNEY.  79 

pay.  It  is  worth  noting  that  during  this  period  he 
made  the  acquaintance  of  Sir  Walter  Scott,  the  two 
men  becoming  excellent  friends.  The  novelist  greatly 
admired  the  character  of  the  traveller,  and  has 
recorded  his  opinion  of  it  in  warm  terms  in  the 
"Surgeon's  Daughter." 

But  though  Park  conscientiously  fulfilled  his  pro- 
fessional duties  in  Peebles,  there  were  many  indications 
that  his  heart  really  lay  in  other  work.  His  thoughts 
continually  went  out  to  the  great  river  of  which  he 
could  justly  regard  himself  as  the  discoverer,  but 
which  still  lay  hid  in  so  much  vagueness  and  mystery. 
He  longed  to  complete  the  work  he  had  begun — to 
possess  the  whole  secret  of  the  Niger.  He  was  con- 
stantly revolving  in  his  mind  the  project  of  a  second 
African  expedition,  which  should  crown  his  previous 
labours,  and  set  at  rest  every  geographical  problem 
connected  with  Central  Africa. 

It  was  some  time  ere  Park's  hopes  and  ambitions 
seemed  likely  to  be  gratified ;  but  at  length  the  chance 
he  had  been  waiting  for  arrived.  The  English 
Government  determined  upon  sending  an  expedition 
to  Central  Africa,  and  Park  was  asked  to  lead  it. 
After  some  delay,  caused  mainly  by  a  change  in  the 
administration  of  the  country,  Mr.  Park  was  ready  to 
set  out.  He  sailed  from  Portsmouth  on  the  30  th  of 
January  1805,  having  as  companions  Mr.  Anderson, 
his  brother-in-law;  and  Mr.  Scott,  the  draughtsman  of 


80  PARK'S  SECOND  JOURNEY. 

the  expedition.  At  Goree  he  secured  the  services  of 
an  officer  and  thirty-five  soldiers,  who,  with  some  half- 
dozen  artificers  and  two  qualified  seamen,  completed 
the  party. 

At  Kayee,  Park  engaged  as  guide  to  the  expedition 
Isaaco,  a  Mandingo  merchant  and  priest — a  man  well 
qualified  for  the  office  by  his  knowledge  of  inland 
travelling.  Pisania  was  reached  on  April  28th ;  and 
here  Mr.  Park  and  his  comrades  were  warmly  received 
by  Mr.  Ainsley,  who  had  been  of  so  much  assistance 
to  the  traveller  on  his  former  journey. 

The  expedition  set  out  from  Pisania  on  the  4th  of 
May.  Mr.  Park  divided  his  men  into  six  messes. 
Mr.  Scott  marched  with  the  first  division,  under  whose 
guidance  were  the  asses ;  Lieutenant  Martyn  had 
charge  of  the  centre ;  while  Mr.  Park  himself,  together 
with  Mr.  Anderson,  brought  up  the  rear.  Thus  the 
party  proceeded,  marching  by  day  and  pitching  their 
tents  at  night.  May  the  11th  brought  them  to 
Medina,  the  chief  town  of  Woolli,  where  Park  had  to 
pay  a  heavy  tax  of  amber  and  coral  to  the  king. 

At  Tambico,  Isaaco  the  guide  was  plundered,  mal- 
treated, and  made  a  prisoner,  being  at  length  released 
only  by  a  ransom  of  considerable  value.  Shortly  after 
this  the  party  suffered  a  strange  but  serious  enough 
attack  from  a  large  swarm  of  bees,  whose  onslaught 
was  of  such  violence  that  six  of  the  asses  and  one 
horse  died  from  the  effects  of  their  stings. 


PARK'S  SECOND  JOURNEY.  81 

The  tribute  which  the  various  native  kings  enforced 
from  Mr.  Park  was  greater  than  he  had  anticipated ; 
indeed  it  may  be  said  that  the  mission  was  literally- 
plundered  on  every  hand.  Difficulties  of  other  kinds, 
too,  soon  began  to  beset  it,  and  to  increase  with  every 
stage  of  its  progress.  The  rains  set  in,  and  the  health  of 
the  men  began  rapidly  to  deteriorate.  This  eventuality 
Park  had  clearly  foreseen ;  but  on  various  accounts 
he  had  not  deemed  it  advisable  to  delay  his  journey 
until  after  the  wet  season. 

In  the  beginning  of  June  the  first  death  occurred — 
that  of  a  carpenter.  A  few  days  later  a  succession  of 
tornadoes,  each  of  exceeding  violence,  was  experi- 
enced, exercising  an  immediate  and  marked  effect  for 
the  worse  upon  the  health  of  the  soldiers.  This,  to 
use  Park's  own  brief  fateful  words,  was  the  beginning 
of  sorrows. 

Fever  and  dysentery  were  soon  making  havoc 
among  the  men.  No  one  wholly  escaped — the  leader 
himself  suffering  with  the  rest — and  before  the  month 
was  over  a  sad  gap  was  visible  in  the  little  party. 
During  this  period  of  dire  distress,  the  best  qualities 
of  the  leader  shone  out  conspicuously.  Patient,  self- 
denying,  undaunted,  often  enduring  fatigue  that  his 
comrades  might  be  spared  it,  and  foregoing  rest  that 
they  might  have  the  more,  cheering  the  sick  and 
soothing  the  dying,  Park  won  the  affection  and  ad- 
miration of  all. 

(94)  6 


82  PARK'S  SECOND  JOURNEY. 

On  the  4th  of  July,  Isaaco  narrowly  escaped  being 
devoured  by  a  crocodile.  As  he  was  crossing  with 
some  of  the  asses  the  river  Wonda,  a  tributary  of  the 
Senegal,  an  alligator  caught  him  by  the  leg  and 
dragged  him  under.  The  black  man  instantly  drove 
his  finger  into  the  creature's  eye ;  the  brute's  grip 
relaxed,  and  the  guide  made  for  the  shore.  But  he 
was  not  quick  enough  for  his  enemy,  which  once  more 
seized  him.  Isaaco  turned,  and  this  time  thrust  his 
fingers  into  both  eyes  of  the  crocodile,  which  at  once 
quitted  its  hold  and  presently  swam  down  the  stream. 
But  Isaaco's  wounds  were  of  so  serious  a  character  that 
the  party  were  obliged  to  halt  for  four  days  before  he 
was  able  to  proceed. 

On  the  19th,  the  Ba  Woolima,  a  tributary  of  the 
Senegal,  was  reached,  and  safely  crossed,  after  much 
difficulty,  by  means  of  an  extemporized  bridge  cleverly 
constructed  by  the  negroes  out  of  two  large  trees  and 
a  number  of  forked  sticks. 

Almost  daily  the  expedition  dwindled  away  before 
the  extreme  hardships  and  difficulties  of  the  journey — 
chief  among  which  were  the  fatal  effects  of  the 
climate.  By  the  19th  of  August  only  one-fourth  of 
the  party  survived.  Some,  at  their  own  request,  had 
been  left  on  the  road  to  die,  among  whom  was  Mr. 
Scott.  Mr.  Anderson  was  soon  to  follow  ;  but  he  had 
the  sad  satisfaction  of  at  least  beholding  the  Niger 
from  afar.     At  Leniba,  from  the  summit  of  a  range  of 


PARK 'S  SECOND  JO  URNE  Y.  83 

hills  which  stretches  between  the  Niger  and  the  Sene- 
gal, the  surviving  members  of  the  expedition  saw  the 
great  river  "  rolling  its  immense  stream  along  the 
plain." 

The  sight  of  the  river,  which  was  the  goal  of  their 
journey,  inspired  the  little  band  with  fresh  strength 
and  courage,  and  they  ventured  to  hope  that  their 
hardships  were  almost  at  an  end.  Several  more  men 
died,  however,  before  Bammakoo  was  reached,  where  the 
party  embarked  in  a  canoe  on  the  Niger.  On  the  fol- 
lowing day  they  arrived  at  Marraboo,  where  Isaaco's  en- 
gagement with  the  expedition  ceased.  He  was  paid 
the  reward  agreed  upon  for  his  services  ;  and  a  second 
compact  was  then  made  between  him  and  Mr.  Park, 
to  the  effect  that  he  was  to  receive  all  the  asses  and 
horses  if  he  should  succeed  in  securing  for  the  expedi- 
tion the  protection  of  the  king  of  Bambarra  and  per- 
mission to  build  a  boat. 

Isaaco  set  out  on  his  mission,  and  some  days  passed 
before  any  word  came  from  Bambarra.  Park  was 
harassed  with  doubt  and  perplexity,  but  was  presently 
relieved  by  the  arrival  of  an  envoy  from  Sego,  the 
capital  of  Bambarra,  who  announced  that  the  king 
would  be  glad  to  receive  the  expedition,  and  accept 
from  Mr.  Park  whatever  remaining  presents  he  pro- 
posed to  make. 

The  reception  which  the  expedition  received  at  Sego 
was  on  the  whole  reassuring.      The  king  promised  to 


84  PARK'S  SECOND  JOURNEY. 

sell  Mr.  Park  a  canoe ;  and  after  great  difficulty  and 
delay  a  suitable  vessel  was  got  ready.  Mr.  Ander- 
son was  never  to  embark  in  the  Joliba — the  name 
which  was  given  to  the  canoe.  On  the  28th  he 
breathed  his  last.  Park's  grief  and  dejection  at  the 
death  of  his  brother-in-law  exceeded  in  intensity  all 
other  misfortunes  that  had  befallen  him  during  his 
journey.  "  No  event,"  he  writes,  "  that  took  place 
during  the  journey  ever  threw  the  smallest  gloom  over 
my  mind,  till  I  laid  Mr.  Anderson  in  the  grave.  I 
then  felt  myself  a  second  time  lonely  and  friendless 
amidst  the  wilds  of  Africa." 

The  party  now  included  five  white  men  only. 
Though  now  fairly  embarked  on  the  Niger,  Park,  after 
coming  through  an  experience  of  so  much  disaster  and 
distress,  could  not  but  be  filled  with  the  most  anxious 
forebodings.  Still  no  sign  of  flinching  from  his  pur- 
pose escaped  him.  His  courage  and  calmness  remained 
unshaken.  "  Though  all  the  Europeans  who  are  with 
me  should  die,  and  though  I  were  myself  half  dead,  I 
would  still  persevere."  Thus  he  writes  to  Lord 
Camden ;  while  his  letters  to  his  wife  express  a  like 
resolution  to  persevere  to  the  death,  together  with  a 
confident  hope  in  the  ultimate  success  of  his  enter- 
prise. 

Park  began  his  last  voyage  down  the  Niger  on 
November  17th,  1805.  It  was  long  ere  any  further 
intelligence  of  the  traveller  and  his  comrades  reached 


PARK'S  SECOND  JOURNEY.  85 

England.  At  last  Park's  friends  became  anxious  about 
him,  and  the  governor  of  Sierra  Leone,  Colonel  Max- 
well, despatched  Isaaco  the  guide  to  inquire  after  the 
fate  of  the  expedition.  At  Sansanding,  Isaaco  met 
Amadi  Fatouma,  the  man  who  had  taken  his  place  as 
guide  and  enterpreter  to  the  expedition,  and  received 
from  his  hands  papers  which  described  the  voyage  of 
the  Englishmen  down  the  river. 

Park  and  his  companions  reached  Silla  and  Jenne  in 
safety ;  but  at  Kabra,  the  port  of  Timbuctoo,  and  at 
Gousamo,  they  were  attacked  by  the  natives,  who  were 
only  repelled  by  a  sharp  musket-fire.  At  Sawer, 
Amadi  Fatouma  quitted  the  party,  his  engagement 
ceasing  at  that  town.  Immediately  thereafter  he  was 
seized  and  imprisoned  by  the  king,  on  the  pretext  that 
the  expedition  had  entered  his  dominions  without 
making  him  sufficient  presents.  Next  morning  a  large 
battalion  of  troops  was  sent  forward  to  intercept  the 
English  party. 

The  native  soldiers  took  up  their  position  at  Boussa, 
at  a  point  where  the  river  flowed  through  a  narrow 
and  rocky  pass.  When  the  English  party  attempted 
to  sail  this  narrow  channel,  they  were  attacked  by 
the  native  troops  with  spears,  arrows,  and  stones.  The 
little  band  of  Englishmen  defended  themselves  vigor- 
ously for  some  time  ;  but  at  length,  believing  that  all 
chance  of  getting  through  the  channel  was  over,  Park 
caught  hold  of  one  of  his  comrades  and  leaped  with 


86  PARK'S  SECOND  JOUBNEY. 

him  into  the  river.  Lieutenant  Martyn  followed  the 
example  of  his  leader,  and  all  were  drowned  while 
attempting  to  escape  by  swimming.  The  natives  who 
escaped  from  the  canoe  narrated  the  circumstances  of 
the  final  catastrophe  to  Amadi  Fatouma  upon  the 
release  of  the  latter  from  his  imprisonment  three 
months  later. 

Isaaco  was  absent  on  his  mission  for  fully  twenty 
months,  and  such  was  the  story  he  brought  back  with 
him  to  Sierra  Leone.  Nearly  a  quarter  of  a  century 
later  Captain  Clapperton,  and  after  him  Richard  and 
John  Lander,  obtained  such  evidence  in  regard  to  the 
manner  of  Park's  death  as  placed  the  truth  of  Amadi 
Fatouma's  statement  almost  beyond  a  doubt. 

Thus  terminated  an  expedition  conceived  under 
hopeful  and  even  brilliant  auspices,  but  opposed  by 
disaster  from  the  very  beginning ;  and  thus  its  gallant 
and  noble  leader  perished. 

The  witness  of  friends  is  unanimous  as  to  the 
character  of  Mungo  Park ;  but  such  testimony  is  not 
needed.  The  man  is  manifest  in  his  life,  and  a  per- 
usal of  his  journal  reveals  to  any  but  the  most  un- 
discerning  reader  what  manner  of  person  the  great 
traveller  was.  He  possessed  every  qualification  for 
the  arduous  task  which  he  undertook  and  so  success- 
fully accomplished ;  for  his  intrepid  courage  was 
mingled  with  the  quiet  strength  of  patience,  his  ardour 
united  with  a  calm  prudence,  his  enthusiasm  balanced 


FACSIMILE  OF 
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MUNGO     PARK'S 
INTENDED   ROUTE 

IN     HIS     SECOND     EXPEDITION 


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PARK'S  SECOND  JOURNEY.  91 

by  a  shrewd,  practical  common  sense.  He  was  as 
completely  fitted  morally  as  he  was  mentally  and 
physically  for  the  great  work  of  his  life ;  and  we  make 
bold  to  say,  without  fear  of  challenge,  that  in  no  trav- 
eller before  or  since  will  there  be  found  a  happier 
union  and  a  finer  equipoise  of  the  qualities  essential 
to  a  hero  of  discovery. 

From  our  narrative  the  reader  may  gather  how 
Park  bore  himself  in  the  chief  crises  of  his  two  arduous 
and  perilous  journeys ;  but  he  must  seek  the  journal 
itself  for  a  full  and  clear  revelation  of  the  traveller's 
character.  We  have  referred  to  the  fact  that  the 
work  of  composition  came  with  difficulty  to  him,  but 
nevertheless  the  journal  is  a  model  of  what  such  a 
work  should  be.  It  is  written  in  an  easy  and  natural 
yet  animated  style,  in  correct  and  idiomatic  English, 
and  with  a  judgment  and  good  taste  that  are  con- 
spicuous. There  is  not  a  vain  or  boastful  line,  not 
a  self -pitying  or  impatient  sentence  in  all  the  book ; 
and  this  in  a  record  of  so  much  vicissitude,  hardship, 
and  peril  met  and  overcome.  You  learn  the  traveller's 
undaunted  courage  only  from  his  acts — as  simply 
narrated  as  they  are  possible  to  be ;  and  the  modesty 
of  the  writer  is  everywhere  as  noticeable  as  his  courage. 
No  one  of  the  innumerable  narratives  of  travel  and 
adventure  that  have  appeared  since  leave  a  more 
pleasing  impression  on  the  reader  than  the  journal  of 
Mungo  Park. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

CLAPPERTON    AND    THE    LANDERS. 

In  our  epitome  of  African  discovery  thus  far  we  have 
followed  the  plan  adopted  by  Mr.  Hugh  Murray* — that, 
namely,  of  giving  an  unbroken  and  consecutive  narra- 
tive of  Park's  travels ;  the  reader  being  thus  enabled 
to  survey  the  traveller's  career  in  an  uninterrupted 
sequence.  Between  Park's  first  and  second  expedition, 
however,  several  journeys  of  exploration  were  made 
into  Central  Africa  by  various  travellers.  The  most 
important  of  these  was  that  undertaken  by  Frederick 
Horneman,  a  young  German  student,  who  set  out  from 
Egypt  in  the  company  of  a  caravan  in  1798.  Mr. 
Horneman  was  equipped  for  his  expedition  by  the 
African  Association.  At  Siwah,  an  oasis  on  the  way 
to  Fezzan,  the  traveller  came  upon  some  very  singular 
and  ancient  ruins,  a  portion  of  which  some  have  con- 
jectured to  be  the  remains  of  the  famous  temple  of 
Jupiter  Ammon.      Later  in  his  journey  he  was  threat- 

*  No  one  who  attempts  to  treat  the  subject  of  African  discovery  can  fail  to  be 
under  obligations  to  Mr.  Hugh  Murray,  to  whose  labours  and  skill  we  here  acknow- 
ledge with  gratitude  our  own  indebtedness. 


CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  93 

ened  with  death  at  the  hands  of  the  Arabs,  but  his 
remarkable  coolness  and  presence  of  mind  saved  him. 
He  was  so  well  versed  not  only  in  the  Mohammedan 
language,  but  in  the  tenets  of  the  faith,  that,  with  a 
little  adroitness  and  assurance,  he  succeeded  in  making 
the  natives  believe  that  he  too  was  a  Moslem. 

After  a  difficult  and  fatiguing  journey  of  sixteen 
days,  Horneman  arrived  at  Fezzan,  where  he  proposed 
to  collect  information  regarding  the  Niger  and  Tim- 
buctoo.  He  subsequently  visited  Tripoli,  and  then  a 
period  of  two  years  passed  without  any  further  word 
of  the  traveller  reaching  England.  He  was  next 
heard  of  as  being  at  Kashna ;  and  Major  Denham, 
during  his  expedition,  ascertained  that  he  had  died  at 
Nyffe  on  the  Niger,  stricken  down  by  the  climate. 

Horneman  was  succeeded  in  the  work  of  African 
exploration  by  Mr.  Nicholls,  who  died  of  fever  on  the 
threshold  of  his  journey.  Roentgen,  a  German,  fol- 
lowed, to  encounter  a  fate  equally  brief  and  sad.  His 
body  was  found  a  little  way  from  his  starting-point, 
and  the  probability  is  that  he  was  murdered  by  his 
guides.  Thus  three  lives,  in  quick  succession,  were 
added  to  the  roll  of  victims  to  the  cause  of  African 
discovery. 

The  narrative  now  falls  to  be  resumed  at  the 
period  after  Park's  second  journey.  Fatal  in  its  issue 
as  that  expedition  had  been,  there  were  many  circum- 
stances connected  with  it  calculated  rather  to  stimulate 


94  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS. 

than  depress  the  public  interest  in  African  exploration. 
Several  problems  in  regard  to  Central  Africa  still 
awaited  solution; — the  exact  course  of  the  Niger 
throughout  its  whole  extent,  and  the  relation  of  the 
same  river  to  the  Congo  ;  were  the  two  rivers  in  part 
identical,  or  wholly  distinct  ? 

To  endeavour  to  determine  these  points,  a  twin 
expedition  was  despatched  to  Africa  under  Govern- 
ment auspices  in  1816.  It  was  under  the  command 
of  Major  Peddie  and  Captain  Tuckey.  Major  Peddie 
was  to  descend  the  Niger,  Captain  Tuckey  to  ascend 
the  Congo.  The  expedition  encountered  difficulties 
and  disaster  almost  from  the  outset,  and  had  at  last 
to  be  abandoned.  A  similar  fate  befell  Captain  Grey, 
who  in  1818  made  a  gallant  but  unsuccessful  attempt 
to  follow  Park's  route. 

Nothing  further  of  importance  was  accomplished 
until  the  missions  of  Major  Denham  and  Lieutenant 
Clapperton  in  1821,  which  proposed  to  explore 
Central  Africa,  with  Tripoli  as  a  starting-point.  The 
expedition  divided  itself  into  two  parties — the  plan 
that  had  been  resolved  on  being  that  each  should 
pursue  a  separate  route  and  meet  again  at  an  agreed 
point.  Major  Denham's  journey  proved  a  most  varied 
and  adventurous  one,  and  furnished  a  great  deal  of 
fresh  and  interesting  information  regarding  the 
country  traversed.  But  Denham's  discoveries  did  not 
bear  directly  upon  the  Niger,  and  must,  therefore,  in 


GLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  95 

the  comparatively  limited  space  at  our  disposal,  be 
excluded  from  our  narrative.  The  two  journeys  made 
by  Lieutenant  Clapperton,  however,  fall  to  be  treated 
in  more  detail. 

When  Clapperton  parted  from  his  confrere,  Major 
Denham,  he  travelled  westward  in  company  with  Dr. 
Oudney,  the  second  in  command  of  the  party.  At 
Murmur  Dr.  Oudney  died,  and  Clapperton  pushed  on 
alone.  After  five  weeks  of  travel  Kano  was  reached 
— a  large  and  important  town  of  thirty  thousand 
inhabitants,  carrying  on  an  extensive  and  varied  com- 
merce with  all  parts  of  Africa.  Clapperton  found  the 
markets  of  Kano  filled  with  a  profusion  of  articles 
whose  richness  and  variety  astonished  him, — cloth  of 
every  description,  raw  silk,  linen  from  Egypt  em- 
broidered with  gold,  Moorish  dresses,  Maltese  sword- 
blades,  tin  and  antimony,  ornaments  in  glass,  coral, 
silver,  and  pewter,  besides  live  stock  and  farm  and 
garden  produce,  and  everywhere  long  rows  of  slaves. 

Lieutenant  Clapperton  next  halted  at  Sackatoo,  a 
large  and  substantially  built  town.  Here  he  made 
handsome  presents  to  Sultan  Bello — a  chief  described 
as  being  of  stately  appearance,  with  a  grand  head  and 
fine  dark  eyes.  He  received  the  expedition  well,  and 
showed  himself  to  be  possessed  of  an  inquiring  mind, 
and  a  degree  of  enlightenment  much  beyond  his 
order. 

On  the  advice  of  this  chief,  Clapperton  resolved  to 


96  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS. 

proceed  no  further  at  present  than  Sackatoo,  having 
become  convinced  that  the  route  to  the  Gulf  of  Benin 
was  impracticable.  Before  finally  leaving  Sackatoo 
he  gathered  such  information  in  regard  to  Park's 
death  as  convinced  him  that  Amadi  Fatouma's  story 
was  in  all  essential  particulars  true.  At  Kouka  he 
rejoined  Major  Denham  ;  and  the  two  travellers,  having 
each  accomplished  a  long  and  arduous  journey,  fruit- 
ful in  interesting  discoveries,  reached  England  in  June 
1825,  after  an  absence  of  nearly  four  years. 

The  results  of  Denham  and  Clapperton's  expedi- 
tions were  sufficiently  encouraging  to  induce  the  British 
Government  to  equip  another  mission  in  the  very  year 
of  the  travellers'  return.  Clapperton — now  a  Captain — 
was  chosen  as  leader,  with  Captain  Pearce  and  Mr. 
Morrison  as  his  colleagues  in  command.  The  party 
started  on  their  journey  from  Badagry  early  in  Decem- 
ber. The  start  was  most  disastrous ;  for  the  travellers 
having  slept  a  night  in  the  open  air  were  presently 
prostrated  with  fever  and  ague.  Mr.  Morrison  was 
obliged  to  give  up  the  idea  of  accompanying  the 
expedition,  and  died  on  the  way  back  to  the  ship. 
Captain  Pearce  struggled  on  bravely  a  little  longer, 
but  at  last  succumbed ;  and  Captain  Clapperton,  him- 
self much  weakened  by  his  sickness,  pursued  his 
journey  under  peculiarly  lonely  and  depressing  con- 
ditions. But  he  had  one  faithful  and  devoted  com- 
panion left  in  his  servant  Richard  Lander,  whose  name 


CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  97 

in  connection  with  African  discovery  was  one  day  to 
become  even  more  famous  than  that  of  his  master. 

A  march  of  sixty  miles  brought  the  little  party  to 
Yarriba,  where  the  travellers  were  most  favourably 
received,  the  people  flocking  to  meet  them  in  every 
town  through  which  they  passed,  and  signifying  the 
honour  in  which  they  held  the  white  men  by  dancing, 
festivals,  and  merry-making. 

The  next  place  of  importance  reached  was  Tshow. 
Here  the  expedition  was  overtaken  by  a  bodyguard 
sent  on  by  the  king  of  Yarriba,  consisting  of  a  number 
of  the  royal  troops  dressed  in  the  most  fantastic  of 
uniforms,  and  presenting  a  wild  and  formidable  appear- 
ance beyond  description. 

At  Katunga,  Captain  Clapperton  had  an  audience 
of  the  king  of  Yarriba,  who  received  the  Englishmen 
seated  in  a  veranda.  The  monarch  wore  a  paste- 
board crown,  two  long  tobes,  or  mantles,  of  cotton  cloth, 
and  a  profusion  of  glass-bead  ornaments.  He  was 
surrounded  by  troops  of  his  wives — more  in  number 
than  Captain  Clapperton  could  account — who  wel- 
comed the  stranger  with  great  cheering,  smiling  on 
him  the  while  with  the  utmost  graciousness. 

Captain  Clapperton  found  Yarriba  to  be  a  flourish- 
ing and  prosperous  kingdom,  justly  and  leniently 
governed,  and  practising  few  of  the  dark  and  barbar- 
ous customs  common  in  Ashantee  and  Dahomey  and 
many   neighbouring   states.       Polygamy,   to   be   sure.. 

(94)  7 


98  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS. 

largely  prevails.  And  when  Captain  Clapperton  as- 
sured several  of  the  chief  men  of  Katunga  that  the 
king  of  England  had  but  one  wife,  the  statement  was 
received  with  mingled  amazement  and  pity  that  so 
great  a  sovereign  should  be  in  so  forlorn  and  desolate 
a  case.  The  king  of  Yarriba  was  proud  to  think 
that  his  own  wives,  hand  joined  in  hand,  would 
stretch  from  one  end  of  his  dominions  to  the  other. 

From  Yarriba  Clapperton  passed  into  the  Borgoo 
country,  presently  arriving  at  the  city  of  Kiama,  an 
important  place  of  thirty  thousand  inhabitants.  The 
party  was  met  by  the  king  himself,  accompanied  by  a 
peculiar  but  striking  bodyguard.  Six  young  girls 
wearing  girdles  of  beads,  and  with  their  hair  bound 
with  fillets,  ran  beside  the  king's  horse,  each  maiden 
brandishing  three  spears.  As  they  ran  they  bounded 
and  leaped  with  a  lightness  and  agility  that  had  the 
appearance  of  flying,  while  their  motions  were  as  full 
of  grace  as  swiftness,  and  their  eyes  sparkled  with 
vivacity.  By-and-by  the  damsels,  laying  aside  their 
lances,  robed  themselves  in  blue  mantles  and  waited 
on  the  king. 

After  departing  from  Kiama,  Captain  Clapperton 
and  his  companions  reached  Wa-wa.  Here  the  most 
amusing  episode  certainly  in  the  whole  journey  oc- 
curred. A  certain  wealthy  widow,  called  Zuma,  con- 
ceived a  violent  affection  for  the  leader  of  the  expedi- 
tion, whom  she  favoured  with  a  degree  of  attention 


CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  99 

that  became  nothing  short  of  persecution.  The  widow, 
though  little  past  her  twentieth  year,  was  a  lady  of 
more  than  embonpoint — of  such  ample  proportions,  in 
fact,  that  Captain  Clapperton  could  find  no  fitter 
comparison  for  her  than  a  '  walking  tun-butt."  This 
pronounced  style  of  beauty  Zuma  emphasized  by  her 
manner  of  dressing,  loading  her  person  with  bright 
and  gaudy  finery,  and  a  profusion  of  ornaments  of 
gold,  coral,  and  beads ;  while  her  hair  she  dyed  blue, 
her  eyebrows  black,  and  her  hands  and  feet  red. 

Thus  equipped,  the  widow  laid  siege  to  Captain 
Clapperton's  heart,  which,  however,  remained  proof 
against  her  most  cunning  blandishments.  Finding 
the  chief  of  the  expedition  impregnable,  she  directed 
the  battery  of  her  smiles  upon  his  lieutenant  and 
servant  Richard  Lander ;  but  with  a  like  result. 
Lander  was  an  extremely  prudent  and  cool-tempered 
young  man ;  and  Zuma's  charms,  which  were  still 
noticeable  notwithstanding  her  extreme  plumpness, 
made  no  impression  upon  him.  The  lady  now  re- 
newed her  attack  upon  Captain  Clapperton  with  fresh 
energy,  and  nothing  short  of  flight  from  Wa-wa  rid 
the  Englishman  of  her  persecutions.  Signs  were  not 
wanting  that  other  considerations  besides  those  of 
affection  influenced  the  widow's  action.  It  was 
rumoured  that  she  cherished  ambitious  designs  of 
supplanting  the  king  upon  his  throne — a  project  in 
which  she  trusted  to  be  materially  aided  by  marriage 


100  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS. 

with  a  young  and  brave  Englishman.  Altogether, 
Captain  Clapperton  experienced  a  very  decided  feel- 
ing of  relief  when  he  was  finally  rid  of  this  ambitious 
and  redoubtable  African  beauty. 

Clapperton  presently  visited  Boussa,  the  scene  of 
Park's  death ;  but  sufficient  reference  has  already 
been  made  to  this  episode  in  his  journey.  Crossing 
the  Niger,  and  passing  through  Nyffe,  the  mission  ar- 
rived at  Zeg-zeg,  an  exceedingly  fertile  region,  beau- 
tifully wooded,  and  rich  with  meadow  and  corn-land. 

The  next  halt  was  at  Kano,  Clapperton's  old 
quarters,  which  he  now  found  in  all  the  distress  and 
confusion  of  war.  The  king  of  Bornou  was  at  deadly 
feud  with  the  Fellata,  and  the  travellers  beheld  signs 
of  battle  on  every  side.  At  the  sultan's  advice  Cap- 
tain Clapperton  betook  himself  with  his  companions 
to  Sackatoo,  and  was  there  lodged  in  the  same  hut 
which  he  had  formerly  occupied.  This  was  the 
traveller's  last  halting-place.  It  was  not  to  be  per- 
mitted him  to  complete  the  journey  which  he  had 
thus  far  carried  through  with  such  intrepidity  and 
with  so  much  success.  He  was  exhausted  by  illness ; 
but  other  causes  besides  bodily  weakness  combined  to 
depress  him. 

The  kindly  and  sympathetic  attitude  of  the  natives 
towards  the  English  mission,  which  we  saw  so  con- 
spicuously displayed  during  Captain  Clapperton's 
previous  journey,  had  now  changed    to   a   feeling  of 


CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  101 

suspicion  and  distrust.  A  rumour,  entirely  without 
foundation,  was  abroad  throughout  Houssa  that  the 
British  nation  meditated  an  invasion  of  the  country. 
Influenced  by  this  idea,  King  Bello  now  acted  with 
great  discourtesy  and  harshness  towards  Captain  Clap- 
perton,  seizing  by  force  a  letter  which  he  was  bearing 
to  the  king  of  Bornou.  Clapperton  bitterly  resented 
this  treatment,  and  spoke  his  mind  out  very  freely  to 
the  king ;  which  only  had  the  effect  of  still  further 
irritating  the  jealous  and  angry  prince.  The  English- 
man was  detained  as  a  prisoner,  and  even  threatened 
with  personal  violence ;  but  matters  did  not  reach 
this  extreme. 

Thus  disappointment  and  vexation,  chafing  Clapper- 
ton's  eager  and  brave  spirit,  united  with  sickness  to 
wear  out  a  frame  already  debilitated  by  the  long 
effects  of  an  African  climate.  He  was  prostrated 
with  dysentery,  which  presently  took  a  fatal  develop- 
ment. The  closing  scenes  of  the  traveller's  life  form 
a  very  touching  picture.  He  was  nursed  day  and 
night  by  his  servant  Richard  Lander  with  more  than 
a  woman's  watchfulness  and  gentle  care.  Towards 
the  end  the  dying  man  called  Lander  to  his  side. 

"  Richard,  I  shall  shortly  be  no  more.  I  feel  my- 
self dying,"  he  said. 

Almost  choked  with  grief,  Lander  could  only  reply, 
"  God  forbid,  my  dear  master ;  you  will  live  many 
years  yet." 


102  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS. 

"  Don't  be  so  much  affected,  my  dear  boy,  I  entreat 
you,"  answered  Clapperton.  "  It  is  the  will  of  the 
Almighty  ;  it  cannot  be  helped." 

Then  the  dying  master  proceeded  to  instruct  his 
attendant  in  regard  to  his  journals  and  the  course  he 
wished  him  to  pursue  after  he  was  dead.  Finally, 
taking  Lander's  hand  in  his  own,  he  gazed  into  his 
face,  and  with  his  eyes  moist  with  tears  said  in  low 
and  deeply-affected  voice, — 

"  My  dear  Richard,  if  you  had  not  been  with  me  I 
should  have  died  long  ago.  I  can  only  thank  you 
with  my  latest  breath  for  your  kindness  and  attach- 
ment to  me ;  and  if  I  could  have  lived  to  return  with 
you,  you  should  have  been  placed  beyond  the  reach  of 
want ;  but  God  will  reward  you." 

A  few  days  later  the  brave  traveller  quietly 
breathed  his  last.  The  strong  attachment  which 
existed  between  Clapperton  and  Lander  is  evident  in 
various  letters  from  the  former  to  the  latter,  in  which 
the  master  expresses  an  affectionate  desire  for  the 
welfare  and  happiness  of  his  servant  most  pleasing  to 
contemplate.  Clapperton  was  a  kind  and  large- 
hearted  man,  as  well  as  one  of  most  fearless  courage, 
capable  of  great  patience  under  difficulty  and  disaster, 
and  of  a  bright  and  buoyant  temperament  that  carried 
him  lightly  through  many  a  delicate  and  trying 
situation. 

After  Clapperton's  death  King  Bello's  attitude  to- 


CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  103 

wards  the  expedition  softened  somewhat.  He  allowed 
Lander  to  bury  his  master  quietly  and  decently,  suf- 
fered him  to  depart  from  the  country,  and  even  for- 
warded him  on  his  homeward  route.  After  a  journey 
of  considerable  vicissitude  and  danger,  in  the  course 
of  which  he  made  a  praiseworthy  but  unsuccessful 
attempt  to  discover  the  termination  of  the  Niger, 
Richard  Lander  reached  the  coast,  and  arrived  in 
England  in  April  1828. 

Brief  mention  must  in  this  place  be  made  of  Major 
Laing's  journey  to  Timbuctoo,  which  was  contempo- 
raneous with  Clapperton's  second  expedition.  During 
his  short  stay  at  Timbuctoo,  Laing  was  able  to  add 
materially  to  our  knowledge  of  the  topography  of  the 
district.  The  traveller's  journey  had  the  same  tragic 
and  sad  ending  as  that  of  so  many  of  his  predecessors. 
He  was  murdered  by  his  guide,  a  Moorish  merchant, 
who  had  undertaken  to  conduct  him  to  the  coast. 

It  will  be  seen  that  there  still  existed  much 
uncertainty  in  regard  to  the  course  of  the  Niger. 
What  was  accurately  known  was  this : — In  his  first 
journey,  Park  had  traced  the  course  of  the  river  be- 
tween Bammakoo  and  Silla,  and  had  also  ascertained 
that  it  rose  in  the  same  mountainous  range  a"s  the 
Senegal.  In  his  second  expedition  he  determined  the 
river's  course  below  Silla  as  far  as  Timbuctoo.  Clap- 
perton  had  fixed  the  position  of  Boussa  beyond  Tim- 
buctoo, but  the  actual  course  of  the  river  between  those 


104  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS. 

two  towns  remained  still  to  be  explored.  It  was  re- 
served for  Richard  and  John  Lander  to  determine  this 
still  undiscovered  portion  of  the  great  river.  The 
three  most  famous  names  connected  with  the  Niger 
are  undoubtedly  those  of  Park,  and  Richard  and  John 
Lander,  if  we  regard  the  work  accomplished  from  the 
point  of  view  of  its  success.  The  Landers,  in  a  word, 
completed  what  Park  had  begun ;  and  the  important 
results  of  their  expedition,  as  well  as  its  intrinsic 
interest,  deserve  that  it  should  be  treated  with  as 
much  detail  as  our  remaining  space  will  allow. 

The  British  Government  having  resolved  to  equip 
an  expedition  for  the  purpose  of  exploring  the  Niger 
below  Boussa,  Richard  Lander  volunteered  his  services 
as  its  leader.  He  was  accompanied  by  his  younger 
brother  John,  to  whom  a  due  measure  of  the  honour  of 
the  expedition  must  in  justice  be  accorded,  and  who  not 
only  shared  with  his  elder  brother  every  toil  and  hard- 
ship, but  materially  assisted  him  with  his  journals. 

The  brothers  sailed  from  England  in  January  1830, 
and  arrived  at  Cape  Coast  Castle  towards  the  end  of 
the  following  month.  Accompanied  by  a  small  party 
of  natives  and  the  interpreter  Pascoe,  they  reached 
Badagry  on  the  21st  of  March.  Here  they  remained 
for  several  days,  detained  by  the  king,  whose  rapacity 
would  not  permit  him  to  let  the  Englishmen  quit  his 
dominions  while  he  could  extract  from  them  another 
present. 


CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  105 

This  region  the  travellers  describe  as  a  fertile  and 
beautiful  one,  but  its  people  as  idle,  covetous,  and  lax 
in  moral  tone.  Their  religion  is  largely  the  Moham- 
medan ;  and  the  Landers,  during  their  sojourn  in 
Badagiy,  witnessed  certain  of  their  ceremonial  ob- 
servances. 

The  ensemble  of  the  scene  presented  a  spectacle  of 
no  little  interest,  from  its  novelty  and  strangeness. 
On  a  sandy  tract  of  ground  encircled  by  trees  the 
travellers  discovered  a  number  of  Mussulmans  in  the 
act  of  ablution  and  worship.  Every  company  of  fresh 
arrivals  was  greeted  by  a  burst  of  music  from  a  native 
band.  Every  one  wore  his  gayest  bravery — loose 
mantles,  caps  and  turbans  in  the  greatest  variety,  and 
of  the  gaudiest  colours ;  while  the  scarfs  and  aprons 
of  the  worshippers  glittered  with  golden  embroidery 
and  silver  spangles.  At  the  conclusion  of  the  cere- 
mony, drums,  bells,  and  fifes  combined  with  volleys 
of  musketry  to  raise  a  deafening  din. 

The  chief  industry  of  Badagry  is  fishing,  together 
with  yam  and  maize  growing.  The  fish  is  taken 
either  with  the  net  or  by  spearing,  or  by  a  curious 
and  ingenious  earthenware  pot  baited  with  palm  oil. 
The  huts  of  the  natives  are  of  neat  construction,  made 
of  bamboo,  and  roofed  with  palm  leaves. 

The  travellers  left  Badagry  on  the  last  day  of 
March  in  a  canoe  lent  them  by  the  king,  Adooley. 
Slowly  they  glided  in  their  long  narrow  vessel  down 


106  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS. 

the  silent  river,  a  starry  sky  and  a  bright  moon  guid- 
ing them  on  their  way.  The  scenery  was  wild  and 
picturesque,  but  could  not  be  described  as  grand,  the 
river  banks  being  low  and  partially  wooded  with 
small  trees,  varied  ever  and  anon  by  one  of  larger 
growth — a  majestic  palm  rising  in  solitary  grandeur, 
its  stately  plume  of  foliage  waving  softly  in  the  night 
wind.  Now  and  then  a  slave-factory  or  a  fetich-hut 
was  noted  as  the  canoe  floated  noiselessly  on. 

In  a  little  while  the  river  narrowed  to  a  breadth  of 
not  more  than  twenty  yards,  while  its  surface  became 
covered  with  a  wealth  of  marine  plants,  from  which 
there  arose,  in  a  dense  cloud,  a  reeking  and  noxious 
miasma.  But  the  stream  again  broadened,  the  float- 
ing plants  disappeared,  the  vegetation  on  the  banks 
grew  richer  and  more  beautiful,  until  the  trees  were 
so  thick  that  they  formed  an  arch  above  the  heads  of 
the  voyagers  that  effectually  shielded  them  from  the 
hot  sun.  The  river  now  abounded  with  alligators 
and  hippopotami,  while  monkeys  and  parrots,  wild 
ducks  and  other  birds,  were  seen  on  all  sides. 

On  the  6th  of  April  the  two  brothers  reached  Jenne, 
where  they  were  hospitably  entertained  by  the  gover- 
nor. The  inhabitants  of  this  district  are  described  as 
temperate  and  diligent — diligent,  that  is,  for  a  people 
dwelling  in  a  land  where  but  a  slight  amount  of 
labour  yields  a  sufficient  sustenance  for  daily  wants. 

Katunga  was  reached  on  the  13th  of  May.      King 


CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  109 

Mansolah  received  the  mission  favourably.  On  the 
occasion  of  the  travellers'  first  audience  with  this  chief 
he  was  dressed  in  a  style  of  great,  though  somewhat 
incongruous,  magnificence.  His  crown  resembled  in 
shape  a  bishop's  mitre,  and  was  decorated  with  a  pro- 
fusion of  coral  beads,  and  secured  beneath  the  chin  to 
prevent  it  from  falling  off.  His  mantle  was  a  wonder- 
ful patchwork  of  green  silk,  crimson  damask,  and 
green  velvet.  His  feet  were  clad  in  English  cotton 
stockings,  and  native  sandals  of  neat  workmanship ; 
and  beneath  him  was  spread  a  carpet  of  fine  blue 
cloth,  the  gift  of  Captain  Clapperton. 

In  the  end  of  May  the  expedition  halted  at  Kiama, 
entering  a  region  whose  people  differed  in  many  re- 
spects —  in  language,  customs,  and  religion  —  from 
those  among  whom  their  route  had  hitherto  led  them. 
Here  the  brothers  were  accommodated  in  a  large  cir- 
cular hut,  the  centre  support  of  which  was  composed 
of  the  stem  of  a  tree.  Two  apertures  gave  entrance 
and  egress  to  the  hut,  over  which  charms  were  sus- 
pended as  a  security  against  fire,  much  in  the  same 
way  as  horse-shoes  are  still,  in  our  enlightened  Eng- 
land, nailed  up  over  barn  doors  for  "  luck."  The 
walls  of  the  cabin  were  covered  with  bows  and 
quivers,  guns,  swords,  spears,  and  other  weapons. 
Outside,  the  scene  was  sufficiently  novel  and  strik- 
ing. Although  a  thunderstorm  was  at  its  height, 
native    men,    women,    and    children    were   seated    in 


110  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS. 

groups  on  the  ground,  or  gathered  about  several  large 
fires  asleep.  The  men  carried  their  weapons  by  their 
sides,  and  their  horses  grazed  near  at  hand,  while  the 
lurid  firelight  lit  up  the  half-naked  figures  of  all. 

Presently  entering  Kiama,  the  Landers  had  an  audi- 
ence of  King  Yarro,  who  received  them  alone,  seated 
on  buffalo  hides.  The  walls  of  the  room  were  deco- 
rated with  well-executed  prints  of  King  George  the 
Fourth,  the  Duke  of  York,  Lord  Nelson,  the  Duke  of 
Wellington,  and  a  portrait  of  a  gaily-dressed  and 
smiling  English  lady.  Here  and  there  on  the  walls 
were  fastened  ragged  scraps  of  paper  inscribed  with 
passages  from  the  Koran.  The  floor  was  strewn  con- 
fusedly with  muskets,  handsomely  ornamented  spears, 
and  other  weapons  of  war. 

The  travellers,  departing  from  Kiama,  reached  a 
place  called  Kakafungi,  a  large  straggling  town,  finely 
situated  on  a  level  plain,  the  inhabitants  of  which 
were  so  clean  in  their  persons,  so  well-mannered,  and 
possessed  of  such  neat  and  comfortable  houses,  that 
the  Englishmen  were  immediately  prepossessed  in 
their  favour.  These  first  impressions  were  but 
strengthened  by  the  subsequent  conduct  of  the  Kaka- 
fungians.  The  travellers  were  provided  with  a  capital 
hut,  and  their  entertainers  waited  on  them  in  a  body, 
bringing  with  them  two  kids  and  an  ample  supply  of 
corn  and  milk,  the  whole  being  presented  by  a  little 
band  of  boys  and  girls  ! 


CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  Ill 

On  the  17th  of  June,  Boussa  was  reached — an  im- 
portant stage  in  the  journey,  by  reason  of  the  inter- 
esting relics  of  Mr.  Park  which  were  here  discovered. 
As  the  two  brothers  sat  on  the  rocky  promontory 
overlooking  the  spot  where  Park  and  his  comrades 
met  their  death,  serious  and  sad  thoughts  could  not 
but  arise  in  their  breasts,  as  they  recalled  the  fate  not 
only  of  the  peerless  explorer  Park  himself,  but  of  the 
many  gallant  men  who  had  followed  in  his  track  and 
sacrificed  their  lives  for  the  same  end — the  endeavour 
to  unriddle  the  mystery  of  the  strange  and  fateful 
river  on  whose  waters  they  were  now  gazing. 

The  travellers  received  from  a  native  a  tobe  of  rich 
crimson  damask,  stiff  with  the  quantity  of  gold  em- 
broidery upon  it,  which  there  was  strong  evidence  to 
prove  had  belonged  to  Mr.  Park.  A  day  or  two  later 
the  travellers  received  a  visit  from  the  king,  bringing 
with  him  a  book  said  to  have  been  recovered  from  the 
water  after  the  upsetting  of  the  canoe  which  held  Park 
and  his  companions.  The  volume  was  wrapped  up  in 
a  cotton  cloth,  and  was  of  considerable  size.  The 
hopes  of  the  Landers  rose  high  that  the  book  would 
prove  to  be  Mr.  Park's  journal,  and  their  disappoint- 
ment was  proportionately  great  on  discovering  that  it 
was  only  an  obsolete  nautical  treatise.  Between  the 
leaves,  however,  a  few  slight  relics  of  the  great 
traveller  were  found — one  or  two  papers  of  no  intrinsic 
importance,  but  bearing  his  handwriting  and  signature. 


112  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS. 

Some  days  afterwards,  at  Yaoorie,  a  gun  which  had 
been  Mr.  Park's  was  also  recovered,  one  of  the  Landers 
giving  his  own  in  exchange  for  it  to  an  Arab  in  whose 
possession  it  was. 

After  some  delay  two  canoes  were  procured  by  the 
brothers,  for  their  return  voyage  from  Yaoorie.  Boussa 
was  again  reached  on  the  5th  of  August ;  and  the 
Landers  now  resolved  to  make  for  Wowou,  to  procure 
a  vessel  better  adapted  for  their  purpose  than  those 
which  they  at  present  possessed.  They  were  ultimately 
successful  in  this  plan,  though  the  arrival  of  the 
canoe  promised  them  by  the  king  of  Wowou  did  not 
take  place  until  the  middle  of  the  following  month.  On 
the  20th  of  September,  everything  being  at  length  in 
readiness,  the  explorers  embarked  from  Boussa  in  two 
canoes.  But  a  short  span  of  their  voyage  was  accom- 
plished when  it  was  discovered  that  the  smaller  of  the 
canoes  was  extremely  leaky  and  in  risk  of  sinking : 
and  at  midday  therefore  a  halt  had  to  be  made  at  a 
little  island  called  Melalie,  in  order  to  cobble  up  the 
boat.  The  next  camping-place  was  on  a  large  and 
beautiful  island  called  Patashie,  remarkably  rich  and 
fertile,  and  shady  with  groves  of  magnificent  palms. 

Having  procured  a  water-tight  canoe,  the  voyagers 
were  once  more  afloat  upon  the  river,  and  for  some 
distance  sailed  on  without  delay  or  hindrance.  Ar- 
riving at  Lever,  or,  as  the  town  is  frequently  called. 
Layaba,  they  remained  till  the  beginning  of  October. 


CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  113 

Here  the  channel  of  the  Niger  was  deep  and  clear, 
and  its  breadth  from  one  to  three  miles. 

On  October  the  4th  a  large  town  was  reached  called 
Bajiebo,  to  which  the  Landers  give  the  palm  among 
African  towns  for  confusion  and  dirt,  and  disagreeables 
of  every  description.  Here  the  travellers  saw  canoes 
of  a  peculiar  description,  different  from  any  they  had 
yet  met  with.  They  were  large,  made  each  of  a  single 
tree-stem,  and  bulwarked  high  with  planks.  Many  of 
the  canoes  had  huts  built  on  them,  thatched  with 
straw,  in  which  whole  families  lived  together,  carrying 
on  their  whole  household  operations. 

On  October  6  th,  on  departing  from  the  island  of 
Madjie,  where  the  travellers  had  camped  for  the  night, 
they  journeyed  swiftly  down  the  river,  and  presently 
came  suddenly  in  sight  of  a  lofty  and  picturesque 
rock  called  Mount  Kesa ;  which,  rising  sheer  from  the 
water  to  a  height  of  three  hundred  feet,  cone-shaped 
and  girdled  with  stately  trees,  made  an  exceedingly 
noble  and  imposing  feature  in  the  landscape. 

The  voyagers  next  reached  the  island  of  Belee, 
where  they  had  an  interview  with  the  chief,  an  im- 
portant personage  in  his  own  estimation,  and  rejoicing 
in  a  high-sounding  but  not  unpoetical  title — the  King 
of  the  Dark  Water.  This  chieftain  made  an  imposing 
approach  to  the  travellers.  A  sound  of  men  singing 
was  heard  in  the  distance,  then  the  dip  of  paddles 
keeping  time  to  the  voices,  but  still  nothing  was  seen. 

©0  8 


114  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS. 

Presently  a  canoe  came  in  sight,  then  a  second  and 
much  larger  one,  rowed  by  a  score  of  stalwart  youths, 
who  sang  as  they  rowed.  The  travellers  were  sur- 
prised at  the  "  pomp  and  circumstance  "  of  the  whole 
procession,  the  royal  barge  being  gaily  ornamented 
with  awnings  and  scarlet  cloth  embroidered  with  gold 
lace.  Three  or  four  young  pages,  becomingly  attired, 
stood  at  the  prow,  and  in  the  stern  a  band  of  hand- 
some musicians.  All  the  retinue  were  well  and  ap- 
propriately dressed. 

The  King  of  the  Dark  Water,  whose  name  was 
Suliken  Rouah,  treated  the  travellers  with  kingly 
munificence,  presenting  them  with  a  jar  of  fine  honey, 
two  thousand  cowries  in  money,  and  a  large  quantity 
of  goora  nuts,  a  description  of  food  highly  esteemed  in 
Africa.  He  was  a  man  of  venerable  and  commanding 
appearance,  and  by  reason  of  his  wealth  and  power 
was  no  doubt  entitled  to  the  importance  to  which  he 
laid  claim. 

The  Landers  at  this  stage  of  their  journey  exchanged 
their  two  canoes  for  one,  and  once  more  embarked  on 
the  river.  They  had  sailed  about  thirty  miles  when 
they  came  upon  a  perfect  swarm  of  hippopotami,  which 
rose  on  all  sides  of  the  canoe,  plunging,  splashing,  and 
snorting,  and  placing  the  frail  vessel  in  great  danger. 
A  shot  or  two  was  fired  at  the  great  brutes,  but  only 
with  the  result  of  summoning  a  fresh  horde  up  from 
the  depths  of  the  river  and  out  of  the  neighbouring 


CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  115 

marshes.  The  natives  in  the  canoe  became  terror- 
struck  ;  and  to  add  to  the  panic,  a  violent  thunder- 
storm, succeeded  by  dense  darkness,  only  illumined  by 
occasional  lightning  flashes,  burst  suddenly  over  the 
heads  of  the  party.  The  rowers  pulled  as  for  life, 
however,  and  after  some  hard  rowing  the  swarm  of 
hippopotami  was  left  behind,  and  a  little  fishing  village 
was  reached,  where  the  voyagers  very  gladly  landed. 

On  October  19th  Egga  was  reached,  a  town  of  great 
extent,  in  the  centre  of  a  fertile  and  fruitful  region. 
Here  the  Englishmen  were  kindly  enough  treated  by 
the  aged  king,  a  good-natured  and  gay-hearted  old 
man,  who  bore  a  long  tale  of  years  with  astonishing- 
vigour  and  lightness  of  spirit.  For  the  delectation  of 
his  guests,  and  also.no  doubt  to  display  his  unabated 
activity,  the  merry  old  chief  performed  a  pas  seul  in 
their  presence  with  surprising  agility  and  nimbleness, 
until  he  seemed  literally  to  "  frisk  beneath  the  burden" 
of  his  years. 

After  leaving  Egga,  the  next  place  at  which  the 
Landers  camped  was  Kacunda.  About  this  point  in 
its  course  the  Niger  changes  its  direction  to  south- 
south-west  ;  and  forty  miles  farther  on  it  is  joined  by 
the  Ishadda,  by  the  influx  of  which  the  width  of  the 
main  river  is  increased  to  between  three  and  four  miles. 

By  the  end  of  October  Damugoo  was  reached,  where 
the  Landers  were  very  well  received  by  the  chief,  who 
provided  them  with  a  canoe  and  a  crew  to  conduct 


116  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS. 

them  to  the  coast.  Shortly  after  leaving  Damugoo 
the  expedition  had  an  unexpected  encounter  with  a 
party  of  hostile  natives  near  a  large  market  town 
called  Kirree.  A  fleet  of  canoes  were  observed  moored 
by  the  banks  of  the  river — of  large  size,  and  having 
flags  flying  from  bamboo  poles.  No  notice  was  taken 
of  these  canoes,  but  a  little  while  afterwards  the 
voyagers  beheld  a  number  of  them  coming  up  the 
river  full  of  men,  and  decorated  with  flags.  The 
travellers  were  allowing  themselves  to  enjoy  the  lively 
and  pleasing  appearance  presented  by  this  native 
flotilla,  when  their  feelings  of  gratification  were 
quickly  changed  by  the  sudden  warlike  demonstra- 
tions of  the  advancing  canoes. 

A  large  canoe  was  quickly  alongside  that  of  the 
travellers,  and  with  marvellous  rapidity  the  whole  of 
their  property  was  transferred  from  one  boat  to  the 
other.  This  unceremonious  treatment  was  altogether 
too  much  for  the  temper  of  the  Englishmen,  and 
despite  the  enormous  odds  against  them  they  began 
to  show  fight.  Richard  Lander,  taking  deliberate  aim 
with  his  musket  at  the  leader  of  the  savages,  a  tall 
brawny  fellow,  would  the  next  moment  have  sent  a 
bullet  through  his  body  had  not  the  weapon  been 
wrested  from  his  grasp  by  three  more  of  the  black 
men.  Then  Lander  seized  hold  of  another  man,  while 
Pascoe,  the  guide,  with  a  well-aimed  blow  of  his  paddle, 
sent  an  opponent  reeling  backward  into  the  canoe. 


CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  117 

Daunted  by  the  determined  resistance  of  the  white 
men,  the  men  in  the  canoes  made  no  further  attack 
upon  them.  But  the  Landers  had  now  lost  every- 
thing ; — clothes,  medicine-chest,  four  guns  (including 
that  of  Mr.  Park) ;  four  cutlasses,  two  pistols,  a  number 
of  very  fine  elephants'  tusks  (a  present  from  the 
kings  of  Wowou  and  Boussa) ;  a  quantity  of  leopard 
skins,  ostrich  feathers,  cowries,  and  other  valuables ; 
and  finally,  what  was  as  serious  a  loss  as  any,  the 
greater  part  of  Richard  Lander's  journal. 

In  these  disastrous  circumstances  the  travellers 
determined  to  land  at  a  town  called  Kirree,  where, 
having  reported  the  whole  proceedings,  they  were  in- 
formed that  their  case  would  be  taken  into  considera- 
tion by  the  chief  men.  The  Englishmen  found  friends 
at  Kirree  ready  to  sympathize  with  and  aid  them,  and 
a  palaver  having  been  held,  the  outcome  of  the  matter 
was,  that  the  offenders,  the  robbers  who  had  so  shame- 
lessly plundered  the  white  men,  were  punished,  and  a 
part  of  their  stolen  property  was  recovered  by  the 
travellers.  On  the  whole,  this  was  perhaps  the  most 
threatening  and  disastrous  episode  in  the  journey ; 
for  not  only  had  the  Landers  suffered  serious  loss  of 
property,  but  had  been  in  instant  peril  of  their  lives. 

The  voyagers  arrived  next  at  Eboe.  Shortly  before 
reaching  the  town  they  passed  through  a  vast  sheet  of 
water  like  a  lake,  with  low,  swampy  margin,  thickly 
clothed  with  palm-trees.      Here  a  considerable  river, 


118  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS. 

forming  an  important  tributary  of  the  Niger,  flowed 
westward,  while  another  took  a  south-easterly  direction. 

At  Eboe  the  Landers  were  detained  by  King  Obie, 
who,  seeing  an  opportunity  of  obtaining  a  valuable 
ransom,  was  determined  not  to  let  it  escape  him.  He 
required  a  present  of  English  goods  equivalent  in 
value  to  twenty  slaves.  The  brothers  were  both 
amazed  and  disconcerted  by  the  amount  of  this  de- 
mand, being  entirely  without  hope  of  satisfying  it. 
The  prospect  before  them  was  gloomy  in  the  extreme 
— indefinite  detention  at  Eboe;  but  from  their  critical 
situation  they  were  at  length  released  by  the  inter- 
vention of  King  Boy  of  Brass  Town,  who  promised  to 
pay  the  sum  demanded  by  King  Obie,  and  to  conduct 
the  travellers  safely  to  the  end  of  their  journey,  if  he 
was  guaranteed  a  present  equal  to  fifteen  slaves,  and 
the  addition  of  a  cask  of  rum  on  the  arrival  of  the 
Englishmen  at  the  coast.  To  this  compact  of  King 
Boy  the  Landers  very  gladly  agreed,  and  the  travel- 
lers departed  from  Eboe  conducted  by  King  Boy. 

At  Brass  Town  the  travellers  were  witnesses  of  a 
curious  fetich  ceremony.  The  priests  began  their 
operations  by  chalking  King  Boy  from  head  to  foot 
with  circles,  lines,  and  various  fantastic  devices,  that 
so  completely  disguised  his  majesty  that  he  was 
scarcely  recognizable.  Then  having  been  disrobed  of 
his  usual  dress,  a  small  silk  handkerchief  was  bound 
about  his  waist,  while  on  his  head  was  placed  a  close- 


CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  119 

fitting  cap,  decorated  with  the  white  and  black  feathers 
of  a  buzzard.  When  the  king  had  taken  in  his  hands 
two  large  chalked  spears,  his  ensemble  was  as  wild  and 
strange  as  it  was  grotesque.  His  retinue  were  then 
similarly  operated  on,  and  finally  the  fetich  priests 
themselves. 

John  Lander  remained  behind  at  Brass  Town,  while 
Richard  proceeded  to  the  coast.  The  English  brig 
Thomas  was  lying  at  anchor  in  the  Nun,  a  branch  of 
the  Niger,  and  Richard  Lander  immediately  laid  his 
position  before  the  commander,  Captain  Lake,  little 
doubting  but  that  he  would  furnish  means  whereby 
King  Boy's  claims  would  be  satisfied.  In  this  hope 
he  was  grievously  disappointed,  Captain  Lake  showing 
a  want  of  sympathy  with  the  brothers  in  their  strait 
for  which  it  is  difficult  to  account.  He  absolutely 
refused  to  advance  the  sum  due  to  King  Boy  for  his 
services ;  and  Richard  and  John  Lander,  the  latter  of 
whom  had  now  arrived  from  Brass  Town,  were  obliged 
to  depart  in  the  brig,  leaving  King  Boy  in  bitterness 
and  dejection  of  spirit  at  not  having  received  his  pro- 
mised reward.  Nothing  which  the  travellers  could 
say  availed  to  assure  the  chief  that  sooner  or  later  he 
would  receive  the  whole  sum  due  to  him ;  but  on  the 
return  of  the  Landers  to  England,  King  Boy  was  paid 
his  debt  in  full  and  with  interest. 

The  travellers  reached  home  on  the  10th  of  June 
1831.     The  success  of  their  expedition  was  complete 


120  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS, 

and  indisputable,  and  the  brothers  Lander  received 
from  their  countrymen  the  full  measure  of  honours 
which  they  had  so  fairly  earned.  They  had  solved 
the  problem  of  African  exploration  which  had  baffled 
so  many  previous  travellers  as  courageous  and  enter- 
prising but  less  fortunate  than  they,  and  had  supplied 
the  last  link  to  the  chain  necessary  to  complete  our 
knowledge  of  the  Niger. 

The  journey  of  the  Landers  was  far  from  being  an 
easy  and  successful  one  throughout.  In  a  rapid  sketch 
of  the  expedition  such  as  the  foregoing,  the  many 
difficulties  of  the  journey — the  almost  daily  hardship, 
the  sickness,  the  weariness,  the  disappointments,  the 
frequent  dejection  and  loneliness  of  spirit  inseparable 
from  African  travel,  all  of  which  are  rather  matter  of 
detail — do  not  fully  appear.  But  a  perusal  of  the 
travellers'  journal  itself  reveals  the  innumerable 
obstacles  with  which  the  two  brothers  had  to  contend, 
and  which  only  great  fortitude,  judgment,  patience, 
and  tact  could  have  overcome.  The  written  account 
of  the  expedition  comprises  a  part  of  the  journal  of 
each  of  the  brothers,  and  is  written  in  a  lively  and 
interesting  style,  that  portion  contributed  by  John 
Lander,  who  had  received  a  better  education,  and  pos- 
sessed greater  literary  facility  than  his  elder  brother, 
being  especially  marked  by  a  fertile  fancy  and  a 
power  of  vivid  description. 

Richard  Lander  was  to  take  part  in  yet  one  other 


CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  121 

African  expedition.  A  scheme  having  been  set  on 
foot  by  a  number  of  Liverpool  merchants,  whereby 
they  hoped  that  commercial  relations  might  be  estab- 
lished with  the  natives  along  the  banks  of  the  Niger, 
two  steamboats  were  fitted  out — the  Quorra  and  the 
Alburkah.  The  services  of  Richard  Lander  as  leader 
of  the  enterprise  were  accepted.  Messrs.  Laird  and 
Oldfield  were  second  in  command,  and  a  strong  party 
of  other  Europeans  completed  the  expedition,  which 
left  England  in  July  1832. 

The  narrative  of  the  voyage  of  the  Quorra  and  the 
Alburkah,  as  told  by  Messrs.  Laird  and  Oldfield,  is 
full  of  interest.  The  expedition  halted  at  many  of 
the  places  visited  by  the  Landers  and  other  travellers, 
and  had  negotiations  with  several  of  the  native  chiefs 
already  mentioned  in  these  pages.  Among  the  most 
interesting  episodes  in  the  voyage  was  an  interview 
with  King  Obie,  whose  name  the  reader  will  recall  in 
connection  with  the  homeward  journey  of  the  Landers. 
In  that  instance  the  African  chief  had  displayed  a 
considerable  degree  of  extortion  as  regards  the  value 
of  the  present  which  he  demanded  from  the  travellers, 
but  in  his  dealings  with  the  present  mission  he  showed 
himself  extremely  conciliatory  and  amiable. 

King  Obie  met  the  English  party,  richly  arrayed  in 
scarlet  cloth,  and  adorned  with  massive  coral  chains, 
bracelets,  and  other  ornaments,  amounting  in  value  to 
nearly  one  hundred  pounds.      Having  shaken  hands 


122  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS. 

with  Mr.  Lander  and  Mr.  Laird  with  great  cordiality, 
he  placed  one  on  each  side  of  his  throne.  The  English- 
men were  surprised  at  the  pleasant  and  "  gentlemanly" 
manner  of  King  Obie ;  the  latter  epithet  being  most 
fairly  applicable  to  the  chief's  whole  conduct  towards 
the  travellers,  for  it  was  uniformly  considerate  and 
generous  both  in  good  and  evil  fortune. 

The  English  party  received  from  King  Obie  a 
present  of  a  fine  bullock,  five  goats,  and  three  hundred 
yams.  On  the  following  morning  a  pleasing  proof  of 
the  regular  industry  of  King  Obie's  subjects  was  wit- 
nessed. At  sunrise  a  large  number  of  canoes  of  all 
sizes  left  the  town,  to  collect  palm  oil,  yams,  and  other 
commodities  of  the  country ;  and  towards  evening  the 
fleet — in  number  not  less  than  a  hundred  and  fifty — 
were  seen  dropping  down  the  river  again,  laden  with 
their  cargoes  of  yams,  bananas,  and  gourds  full  of 
palm  oil. 

On  that  day  King  Obie  paid  a  visit  to  Mr.  Lander 
on  the  Alburkah.  His  escort  consisted  of  seven  large 
war-canoes  filled  with  rowers.  Having  dined  with 
Mr.  Lander,  the  chief  remained  some  hours  on  board 
the  vessel,  and  finally  took  his  leave  under  a  royal 
salute.  He  was  escorted  home  by  two  of  the  sailors, 
whom  he  entertained  at  his  own  house  with  palm  oil 
and  roasted  yams.  This  cordiality  and  good-fellowship 
were  not  confined  to  the  king ;  all  his  subjects  vied 
in  their  attentions  to  the  members  of  the  expedition. 


CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  125 

As  a  commercial  enterprise  this  mission — the  last 
which  we  are  to  consider — proved  a  failure.  The 
attempt  to  establish  a  trade  intercourse  with  Central 
Africa  came  to  nothing.  Yet  the  expedition  was  not 
without  results;  the  most  important  of  which  was,  that 
it  proved  beyond  a  doubt  that  the  mighty  stream  of 
the  Niger  was  navigable  for  purposes  of  commerce 
from  its  mouth  as  far  as  Boussa. 

Our  rapid  survey  of  African  discovery  in  one  im- 
portant direction  has,  we  trust,  proved  how  deeply 
interesting  is  the  whole  subject  of  African  exploration. 
Since  the  date  of  the  formation  of  the  African  Associa- 
tion the  world's  interest  in  the  "  Dark  Continent "  has 
continued  to  grow  and  deepen,  down  to  the  present 
day.  This  interest  is  undoubtedly  a  healthy  and 
natural  one — it  is  an  interest  in  the  spread  of  knowl- 
edge, of  civilization,  and  of  Christianity.  The  vast 
African  continent  has  year  by  year  grown  a  little  less 
"  dark;"  and  as  nation  by  nation  and  tribe  by  tribe  of 
its  dusky  millions  are  reclaimed  from  darkness  and 
linked  to  the  rest  of  the  discovered  world,  it  is  to 
emerge,  we  may  surely  hope,  into  the  light  of  civiliza- 
tion, and  finally  of  Christianity. 

Our  narrative  has  shown  how  many  noble  and  gal- 
lant lives  have  been  spent  and  lost  in  one  field  of 
African  exploration ;  and  to  these  must  be  added  all 
those  lost  in  other  directions  of  the  same  work.  But 
who  shall  say  they  have  been  lives  vainly  sacrificed? 


126  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS. 

Are  they  not  all  to  be  reckoned  rather  as  parts  of  that 
vicarious  sacrifice  without  which,  it  would  seem,  the 
progress  of  the  world  cannot  subsist  ? 

Even  this  brief  narrative  has,  we  think,  furnished 
abundant  proof  of  how  capable  the  negro  race  is  of 
humanizing  influences ;  and  the  story  of  African  dis- 
covery generally  bears  witness  to  the  same  fact.  From 
Park  to  Moffat,  and  from  Moffat  to  Stanley,  the  jour- 
nals of  every  African  traveller  contain  testimony  more 
or  less  ample  and  conclusive  to  the  truth  of  our  state- 
ment. In  these  pages  we  have  seen  the  African  native 
sometimes  fickle  and  inconstant,  wily  and  rapacious ; 
but  we  have  seen  him  far  more  often  gentle  and 
faithful,  warm-hearted  and  compassionate.  We  recall 
Park,  again  and  again  ministered  to  in  hunger,  naked- 
ness, and  sickness,  with  tender  and  pitying  care ;  the 
brothers  Lander,  helped  and  cheered  on  their  journey 
by  many  a  deed  of  gentleness  or  of  generosity ;  we 
think  of  Livingstone,  spending  years  in  the  heart  of 
the  African  wilderness,  a  solitary  and  lonely  white 
man,  without  a  single  comrade  of  his  own  race  to 
share  his  exile,  but  tended  by  his  dark-skinned  com- 
panions with  the  most  watchful  solicitude,  loved  and 
reverenced  in  life  as  a  father  and  a  teacher,  and 
mourned  in  death  with  a  sorrow  at  once  too  simple 
and  too  deep  to  be  doubted ;  we  remember  Stanley  in 
his  adventurous  and  perilous  journey  testifying  again 
and  again  that  never  had  he  known  more  faithful 


CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS.  127 

and  devoted  comradeship  than  that  which  he  re- 
ceived from  his  negro  companions ; — and  recalling 
these  and  a  hundred  kindred  instances,  the  unpreju- 
diced and  candid  mind  must  acknowledge  that  the 
negro  character  is  capable  of  a  high  degree  of  af- 
fection, of  gentleness,  of  self-sacrifice,  devotion,  and 
nobility. 

Since  the  attention  of  England  was  first  turned  to 
the  subject  of  African  exploration  much  time  and 
money  and  life  has  been  spent  in  the  work;  but  who, 
we  repeat,  will  choose  to  say  that  either  the  time  or 
the  money  or  even  the  life  has  been  wasted,  if  by  their 
loss  Africa  is  now  emerging  from  the  darkness  of 
heathendom  and  savagery  into  the  light  of  civilization, 
gentleness,  and  truth  ? 

Volunteers  for  the  work  of  African  discovery  have 
never  failed — they  are  as  promptly  forthcoming  now 
as  they  ever  were ;  and  almost  every  year  witnesses 
some  fresh  and  splendid  achievement  in  this  field  of 
geographical  enterprise.  The  records  of  African  ex- 
ploration furnish  examples  of  courage  and  endurance, 
of  patience,  self -discipline,  and  self-sacrifice,  that  rise 
to  the  highest  heroism :  hardship,  disaster,  and  death 
itself  have  never  dismayed  the  African  pioneer.  When 
the  last  hero  has  ended  his  career  only  in  a  grave  in 
the  wilderness,  a  successor  has  never  been  wanting  to 
tread  in  the  same  path.  The  torch  has  been  passed 
on  from  one  victorious  or  from  one  dying  hand  to 


128  CLAPPERTON  AND  THE  LANDERS. 

another — the  line  has  never  been  entirely  broken ;  as 
one  has  fallen,  another  has  been  immediately  at  hand 
to  fill  up  the  breach — 

"  Each  stepping  where  his  comrade  stood 
The  instant  that  he  fell." 


CHAPTER  V. 

EXPLORATION  OF  THE  NIGER  AND  BENUEH 
BY  M.  ADOLPHE  BURDO. 

Having  thus  surveyed  exploration  in  Western  Africa 
in  the  past,  we  purpose  giving  the  reader  an  idea  of 
what  has  been  done  in  the  same  direction  in  recent 
times.  With  this  object  in  view,  we  cannot  do  better 
than  present  a  brief  summary  of  the  travels  of 
M.  Adolphe  Burdo,  one  of  the  latest  explorers  of  the 
Niger  and  the  regions  watered  by  it. 

M.  Burdo  left  France  in  April  1878,  and  having 
arrived  at  Sierra  Leone,  proceeded  thence  to  Bonny, 
situated  in  the  delta  of  the  Niger.  The  unhealthy 
climate  of  this  region  renders  it  impossible  for  the 
European  inhabitants  to  live  on  the  land.  Resort  is 
had,  therefore,  to  hulks  moored  at  the  mouths  of  the 
rivers,  which  serve  both  as  dwelling-houses  and  for 
purposes  of  commerce.  The  present  king  of  Bonny, 
George  Peppel,  deserves  a  word  of  mention.  He 
passed  the  early  years  of  his  life  in  England,  and,  in 
the  midst  of  a  still   semi-savage  and   heathen   race, 

.        (94)  9 


130  BURDO' S  EXPLORATION. 

comports  himself  in  most  respects  like  a  European. 
Some  time  ago  the  English  nation  presented  him 
with  a  small  steamer,  aided  by  which  the  king  carries 
on  a  brisk  trade  in  palm  oil. 

At  Bonny  M.  Burdo  was  told  that  it  would  be 
impossible  to  reach  the  Niger  from  that  point.  He 
therefore  proceeded  to  Brass,  and  there  began  his 
preparations  for  his  voyage  on  the  great  river  by 
procuring  a  half-decked  canoe  and  engaging  twelve 
Kroomen  to  man  it.  In  a  little  while  all  was  ready 
for  the  start,  and  the  canoe  was  afloat  on  one  of  the 
innumerable  creeks  which  form  the  delta  of  the  Niger. 

The  utter  solitude  and  gloom  which  reign  over 
this  portion  of  the  Niger,  exert  a  most  depressing 
influence  on  the  traveller  beginning  his  long  voyage. 
Destitute  alike  of  flower  or  grass  as  well  as  of 
almost  all  animal  life,  the  only  sound  that  breaks  the 
tomb-like  silence  is  the  mournful  swaying  of  the 
slimy-branched  aquatic  trees  from  which  here  and 
there  long  snakes  may  be  seen  trailing. 

The  progress  made  by  the  party  was  slow  and 
unsatisfactory.  Again  and  again  their  course  was 
completely  arrested  by  impenetrable  barriers  of  man- 
groves. The  fresh  provisions  became  exhausted,  and 
no  human  habitations  were  visible  on  the  banks.  On 
the  fourth  day  from  the  start,  the  conclusion  forced 
itself  upon  M.  Burdo  that  he  had  lost  his  way  in  this 
dreary  maze  of  creeks  and  mangrove  swamps.     De- 


BURDO' S  EXPLORATION.  131 

spondency  and  terror  now  took  possession  of  the 
Kroomen,  and  they  abandoned  their  rowing.  It  was 
with  the  greatest  difficulty  that  M.  Burdo  succeeded 
in  reanimating  their  drooping  spirits,  and  inspiring 
them  with  sufficient  energy  to  renew  their  labours. 

After  a  time  the  channel  in  which  the  canoe  was 
sailing  widened,  and  M.  Burdo  was  in  hopes  that  his 
difficulties  were  so  far  over,  and  that  his  further 
progress  would  be  unimpeded.  But  he  soon  discovered 
that  the  creek,  instead  of  leading  in  the  direction  of 
the  Niger,  was  evidently  bearing  them  towards  the 
sea,  and  presently  the  water  became  quite  salt. 

Darkness  fell :  the  channel  became  wider  and 
wider,  and  presently  a  light  was  descried  on  the 
bank.  The  canoe  was  steered  for  the  welcome  beacon, 
but  the  current  now  became  so  strong  that  the 
voyagers  were  borne  past  the  light  and  hurried 
rapidly  towards  the  open  ocean. 

A  noise  as  of  breaking  surf  was  now  heard,  and  a 
white  line  was  visible  straight  ahead.  A  new  danger 
threatened  the  party.  The  white  line  could  only  be 
the  surf  dashing  against  the  reefs  that  barred  the 
mouth  of  the  river.  Anchor  was  at  once  cast,  and 
the  canoe  brought  up  with  so  sudden  a  shock  as 
almost  to  break  the  cable. 

The  Kroomen  slept,  but  M.  Burdo's  anxiety  was 
too  great  to  admit  of  slumber.  The  cable  might 
break  at  any  moment,  and  the  canoe  be  hurried  to 


132  BUBDO'S  EXPLORATION. 

instant  destruction.  By  morning,  however,  the 
violence  of  the  current  had  lessened,  for  the  tide 
had  turned.  A  factory  was  observed  on  the  bank  of 
the  river,  and  towards  it  the  canoe  was  at  once 
steered.  The  station  at  which  the  party  now  landed 
was  Akassa,  and  the  stream  which  had  come  so  near 
to  being  the  destruction  of  the  explorers  was  the 
Nun,  which  M.  Burdo  had  been  especially  anxious 
to  avoid  on  account  of  the  impetuosity  of  its  current. 

Akassa  is  destined  to  be  a  place  of  importance, 
should  the  Niger  and  Benueh  one  day  be  opened  to 
the  European  trader,  for  it  would  probably  then 
become  the  point  of  union  between  the  factories  on 
these  rivers  and  the  countries  of  Europe. 

From  Akassa  M.  Burdo  and  his  party  were  con- 
veyed by  the  steamer  of  the  African  Company  to 
Onitsha,  up  the  broad  and  rapid  stream  of  the  Nun. 
Emerging  from  this  river,  the  Niger  itself  was  at  last 
gained,  and  the  scenery  at  once  entirely  changed  its 
character.  The  sombre  maze  of  creeks  and  the  inter- 
minable mangrove  swamps  which,  as  has  been  indicated, 
characterize  the  delta,  gave  place  to  a  broad  and 
noble  river,  its  banks  clothed  with  all  the  luxuriance 
of  African  vegetation.  Cocoa-nut,  banana,  and  cotton 
trees  waved  their  branches  against  the  sky,  and  birds 
of  rainbow  plumage  fluttered  amid  the  thick  leafage, 
while  ever  and  again  a  village  peeped  out  from 
behind  its  green  bower. 


BURDO'S  EXPLORATION.  133 

En  route  to  Onitsha,  Aboh  was  stopped  at,  the 
largest  town  in  the  district,  and  commercially  one  of 
the  most  active.  An  energetic  and  warlike  race,  the 
natives  of  Aboh  are  extremely  jealous  of  the  white 
man.  They  are  at  incessant  feud  with  the  neighbour- 
ing tribes,  pass  their  lives  chiefly  on  the  water,  and, 
in  short,  are  little  else  than  a  race  of  pirates. 

Onitsha  lies  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Niger,  in  lati- 
tude 6°  8'  north.  Taking  leave  of  the  little  steamer 
and  its  captain,  M.  Burdo  now  disembarked.  At  this 
point  two  of  his  followers  deserted,  and  two  others 
having  proved  equally  faithless  at  Akassa,  the  expedi- 
tion was  reduced  to  eight  men  exclusive  of  the  leader. 

It  was  market-day  when  M.  Burdo  arrived  at 
Onitsha,  and  the  river  was  thronged  with  canoes, 
while  the  banks  were  lined  with  a  motley  and  excited 
crowd  of  traders  from  the  town  itself  and  from  the 
neighbouring  tribes.  The  market-place  presented  a 
curious  sight.  Women  offered  their  wares  for  sale, 
consisting  chiefly  of  palm  oil  and  ivory,  together  with 
beads,  calicoes,  and  gin  or  rum.  The  men  walked  in 
and  out  among  the  saleswomen  and  made  their  pur- 
chases, cowries  being  the  medium  of  exchange.  A 
great  diversity  of  race  was  to  be  noticed  among  the 
negroes,  and  their  colour  varied  from  ebony  to  copper. 

The  king  of  Onitsha  received  M.  Burdo  with  signal 
marks  of  friendliness,  and  with  all  the  pomp  he  could 
command.      He  was  seated  in   the  royal   hut   on  a 


134  BURDO'S  EXPLORATION. 

carpet  of  red  velvet,  dressed  in  a  green  mantle,  and 
on  his  head  a  large  hat  of  leaves  decorated  with  a 
plume  of  white  feathers.  He  was  surrounded  by  a 
large  suite  of  attendants. 

To  the  words  of  salutation  and  congratulation 
addressed  to  him  by  M.  Burdo  the  king  returned  a 
gracious  reply,  and  then  offered  the  stranger  palm 
wine  and  kolas,  a  sort  of  almonds,  red  and  of  a  bitter 
taste.  M.  Burdo  was  then  requested  to  be  seated — 
a  conspicuous  mark  of  favour  on  the  negro  monarch's 
part,  as  no  one  of  his  own  people  is  permitted  to  sit 
in  his  presence. 

The  customary  exchange  of  presents  followed,  and 
the  king  seemed  well  contented  with  the  white  man's 
gift — a  parcel  of  calicoes,  with  bead-strings,  mirrors, 
and  a  knife.  M.  Burdo  received  from  his  host  in 
return  a  welcome  addition  to  his  stock  of  provisions, 
in  the  shape  of  fowls,  bananas,  a  jar  of  palm  wine, 
and  a  whole  ox. 

M.  Burdo  found  that  the  women  of  Onitsha  occupy 
a  somewhat  less  degraded  position  than  is  the  case 
among  most  negro  tribes.  Commercial  negotiations 
are  commonly  intrusted  to  them,  and  in  this  depart- 
ment they  display  a  large  amount  of  shrewdness. 
They  follow  their  husbands  to  battle,  and  play  the 
part  of  vivanclieres  with  both  courage  and  gentleness. 

At  Onitsha  M.  Burdo  engaged  seventeen  natives  as 
rowers,   and    the    expedition    now    consisted    of    two 


BURDO'S  EXPLORATION.  135 

canoes.  At  Atane  the  main  stream  of  the  Niger  was 
quitted  for  a  while,  and  a  creek  entered  traversing 
the  Obotshi  country.  Swarms  of  hippopotami  were 
discovered  in  this  stream,  one  of  which  M.  Burdo 
succeeded  in  killing.  When  night  approaches,  these 
animals  come  up  out  of  the  water  to  feed  on  the  long 
grass  on  the  banks.  All  night  they  browse  on  these 
pastures,  and  at  daybreak  again  seek  the  river-bed. 

The  next  halt  was  made  at  Accre,  where  M.  Burdo 
found  the  king  engaged  in  feting  a  neighbouring 
prince.  The  white  man  was  invited  to  witness  the 
rejoicings,  and  conducted  to  the  king's  presence.  The 
prince  of  Accre  and  his  friend  the  King  Oputa 
both  rose  at  the  white  man's  approach  and  gave  him 
a  cordial  welcome.  King  Oputa,  a  young  man  with 
a  singularly  grave  and  even  melancholy  cast  of  coun- 
tenance for  a  negro,  could  understand  a  few  words  of 
English. 

The  fete  was  now  continued  with  much  uproar  of 
fifes  and  tom-toms.  Dance  followed  dance,  while  the 
public  singers  chanted  the  praises  of  the  two  kings, 
mingling  with  these  complimentary  extemporized 
verses  in  honour  of  the  white  man. 

It  was  arranged  that  M.  Burdo  should  continue  his 
journey  in  company  with  King  Oputa  and  his  retinue, 
and  having  warmly  thanked  the  king  of  Accre  for 
his  kind  reception,  the  traveller  once  more  embarked. 
M.  Burdo  parted  from  King  Oputa  at  a  point  where 


136  BURDO'S  EXPLORATION. 

the  creek  forked,  the  traveller  striking  northward, 
the  king  taking  a  westerly  course  towards  the  Niger. 

The  territory  which  the  expedition  now  entered  is 
called  Esuama-Ebo,  a  district  of  large  extent.  The 
religion  of  the  natives  is  almost  pure  idolatry ;  but 
some  slight  traces  of  Judaism  may  be  discovered  in 
it — a  circumstance  which  seems  to  indicate  that  some 
stray  wanderers  of  the  Hebrew  race  must  long  ago 
have  found  their  way  to  these  regions,  and  in  the 
gradual  course  of  time  become  assimilated  to  the 
natives  both  in  appearance  and  customs,  leavening 
the  races  around  them,  however,  with  a  few  of  their 
own  ideas.  Thus  the  people  of  Ebo  believe  in  a  God, 
Orissa  or  Tshuku,  who  is  supreme  and  omnipotent ; 
as  well  as  in  an  evil  spirit  corresponding  to  Satan, 
whom  they  name  Kamallo,  or  Igwik-AUa.  When  it 
is  explained  that  Igivik  means  "  one  who  has  fallen 
from  a  place  of  honour,"  and  that  Alia  denotes  "  earth," 
the  parallel  between  Igwik-AUa  and  the  fallen  angel 
of  the  Scriptures  may  be  readily  recognized. 

As  the  Jews  had  their  sacred  city  Jerusalem,  so 
the  people  of  Ebo  have  their  holy  city  Aro,  to  which 
they  make  many  pilgrimages,  as  the  followers  of  the 
Prophet  do  to  Mecca. 

Quitting  Ebo,  M.  Burdo  faced  north-east,  and  pres- 
ently reached  N'Teja,  which  he  found  in  a  state  of 
great  excitement  consequent  on  the  king  having  de- 
clared  war  with   his    neighbours   the   Ogidis.       Kinor 


B  URDO  'S  EXP  LOR  A  TION.  1 37 

Ogene  received  the  white  man  favourably  enough,  but 
absolutely  forbade  him  to  advance  further  into  his 
territories.  He  promised,  however,  to  show  M.  Burdo 
another  route  by  which  the  Niger  might  be  reached. 
The  apparent  reason  for  this  course  of  action  on  the 
king's  part  was  that  he  feared  that  the  white  man's 
presence  among  his  enemies,  the  Ogidis,  might  bring 
with  it  the  favour  of  the  Great  Spirit.  After  witness- 
ing a  curious  religious  rite,  by  which  King  Ogene 
sought  to  propitiate  the  god  Tshuku  in  favour  of  his 
arms,  M.  Burdo  departed  in  a  northerly  direction 
towards  Imam. 

The  natives  of  Ebo  are  a  fierce  and  war-loving 
people.  Giving  no  quarter  and  seeking  none,  they 
make  neither  slaves  nor  prisoners,  but  put  all  captives 
to  death  without  mercy.  They  carry  out  the  stern 
old  code,  "  an  eye  for  an  eye,  and  a  tooth  for  a  tooth," 
to  the  letter.  If  a  man  murders  another,  the  victim's 
relatives  pursue  the  murderer  to  the  death;  and  if  the 
assassin  finally  escapes,  some  one  of  his  relatives  suffers 
death  in  his  stead,  and  thus  justice  is  appeased. 

The  negroes  regard  life  as  falling  into  four  epochs — 
namely,  infancy ;  youth,  when  a  person  must  look 
after  himself ;  manhood,  when  a  man  may  take  a 
wife ;  and  old  age,  when  he  is  looked  upon  as  little 
better  than  a  burden  to  his  friends  and  the  state. 
It  must  in  justice  be  stated,  however,  that  a  great 
difference  in  regard  to  this  last  custom  exists  among 


138  BUEDO'S  EXPLORATION. 

different  tribes.  Some  of  the  native  races  along  the 
Niger  pay  all  due  respect  to  their  old  men,  seeking 
their  counsel  both  in  peace  and  war. 

A  man's  wives  in  negro-land  are  usually  in  pro- 
portion to  his  fortune.  The  wife  becomes  to  all  in- 
tents a  slave ;  and  so  far  from  looking  with  a  jealous 
eye  upon  a  fresh  arrival  in  the  seraglio,  she  welcomes 
the  new-comer  as  a  sharer  in  the  household  work  and 
drudgery. 

On  the  second  day  after  leaving  the  country  of  the 
Ogidis  the  expedition  had  a  sharp  encounter  with 
hostile  natives,  about  thirty  in  number.  M.  Burdo's 
followers  behaved  well,  and  succeeded  in  routing  their 
assailants ;  but  not  before  one — the  bravest  of  the 
band — paid  forfeit  with  his  life.  This  was  "Go-fast," 
one  of  the  trustiest  of  M.  Burdo's  escort,  who  fell 
pierced  by  an  arrow.  Everything  possible  was  done 
for  the  wounded  man,  but  poor  Go-fast  subsequently 
died  of  his  hurt. 

On  the  day  following  this  encounter  and  catastrophe 
the  party  reached  the  territory  of  Annam,  a  fertile 
region,  rich  in  palm-trees,  yams,  and  bananas.  M. 
Burdo  was  interested  in  the  method  of  fishing  adopted 
by  the  natives  of  this  district,  which  is  curious  and 
ingenious. 

Wooden  constructions,  resembling  rude  sentry-boxes, 
supported  on  poles,  are  set  up  in  mid-stream.  In 
these  the  fishermen  take  their  station,  with  a  large 


BURDO'S  EXPLORATION.  139 

oblong  net  made  of  fibre,  to  which  is  secured  a  basket. 
This  net,  with  the  basket  depending  from  the  middle, 
the  fisherman  lowers  by  a  rope  into  the  water.  Two 
comrades,  seated  in  a  canoe  near  the  bank,  narrowly 
watch  the  casting  of  the  net,  and  as  soon  as  it  is 
drawn  up  they  approach  and  receive  the  catch,  what- 
ever it  may  be.  Then  the  net  is  again  lowered,  and 
so  da  capo.  Great  quantities  of  fish  are  frequently 
taken  by  this  method. 

M.  Burdo  was  now  told  that  the  great  river 
Osimirin — the  name  which  the  natives  of  these  parts 
give  to  the  Niger — was  near  at  hand ;  and  presently 
the  expedition  reached  Ogbekin,  the  capital  of  King 
Oputa's  country,  situated  on  a  creek  of  the  Niger,  in 
6°  25'  north  latitude 

The  traveller  was  met  by  King  Oputa  and  a  large 
following,  who  conducted  him  to  the  village,  enter- 
tained him  with  palm  wine,  bananas,  and  kolas,  and 
furnished  him  with  a  hut  for  himself. 

M.  Burdo  now  paid  off  some  of  his  men  whose  term 
of  service  had  expired,  and  was  immediately  provided 
with  another  canoe  and  more  men  by  King  Oputa. 

During  his  stay  at  Ogbekin  M.  Burdo  witnessed 
the  festival  of  the  Waye,  held  to  signalize  the 
sprouting  of  the  yam  crop,  and  an  important  cere- 
mony among  the  natives.  The  whole  tribe  was 
gathered  together  about  the  royal  huts,  and  proceeded 
thence  to  a  large  bombax-tree.      The  priest  then  took 


140  BURDO'S  EXPLORATION. 

a  number  of  newly-gathered  yams,  some  kola  nuts, 
and  fresh  fish,  which  had  been  brought  by  the  chiefs 
as  an  offering.  The  yams  having  been  sliced  up  by 
the  priest,  the  king  received  and  ate  a  piece,  and  was 
followed  in  like  manner  by  his  chiefs  in  turn,  each 
first  pronouncing  the  words,  "  Thanks  be  to  Tshuka. 
who  permits  me  to  eat  the  waye."  The  religious  part 
of  the  rite  being  performed,  the  ceremony  winds  up 
with  a  merry-making. 

A  rite  of  a  very  different  kind  obtains  among  the 
Ogbekin  tribes,  which  the  influence  of  Christianity 
has  not  yet  touched  in  any  degree.  This  is  the  yearly 
ceremony  of  expiation,  performed  to  atone  both  for 
the  sins  of  the  king  and  the  people. 

Two  young  girls,  chosen  generally  from  hostile 
tribes,  having  been  stripped  of  all  clothing,  are  decked 
out  by  the  priests  in  a  fantastic  garb  of  leaves,  flowers, 
and  tinsel.  They  are  then  led  out  and  exposed  to  the 
violence  of  the  mob,  who  assail  them  with  vitupera- 
tion of  every  description,  shouting,  "  Arroyo",  arroye" " 
(Accursed,  accursed).  Finally  the  victims  are  put  to 
death.  Among  some  tribes  it  is  the  custom  to  take 
the  victim  in  a  canoe  into  the  middle  of  the  river, 
and,  fastening  a  heavy  weight  to  her  person,  drown 
her. 

This  is  a  very  ancient  and  deep-rooted  custom,  and 
by  its  due  observance  it  is  believed  that  whatever 
crimes  may  have  been  committed  by  the  king  and  his 


BURDO' S  EXPLORATION.  141 

people  during  the  year  are  washed  out  by  the  blood  of 
the  sacrifice.  May  the  time  be  hastened  when  the 
spread  of  civilization  and  the  softening  power  of  Chris- 
tianity shall  end  this  cruel  and  frightful  barbarism. 

King  Oputa,  the  grave  and  melancholy,  treated  M. 
Burdo  with  great  hospitality,  even  to  the  extent  of 
offering  him  one  of  the  prettiest  and  most  favourite 
of  his  wives.  The  black  monarch  hardly  concealed 
his  surprise  at  his  guest  declining  this  gift,  and  M. 
Burdo  had  some  difficulty  in  making  his  host  com- 
prehend the  nature  of  the  tie  between  husband  and 
wife  among  Europeans.  The  king  could  only  account 
for  a  white  man  having  but  one  wife  on  the  score  of 
poverty ;  in  fact,  it  was  clear  that  neither  he  nor  his 
wives  quite  believed  M.  Burdo's  statements  in  regard 
to  the  faithfulness  of  the  white  man  to  his  wife,  re- 
ceiving them  with  much  good-humoured  but  incredu- 
lous laughter. 

Oputa  showed  much  regret  at  parting  from  M. 
Burdo,  who  proceeded  from  Ogbekin  to  Asaba,  situ- 
ated 6°  11'  north.  Asaba,  in  its  external  aspect,  was 
one  of  the  most  curious  towns  visited  by  the  traveller. 
A  temple  stood  in  the  centre  of  the  town,  adorned 
with  the  most  grotesque  idols,  one  of  these  represent- 
ing a  huge  figure  of  a  mother  with  new-born  children 
beside  her.  The  walls  of  the  temple  were  decorated 
with  rude  frescoes  of  wild  beasts  of  strange  and  un- 
known shapes. 


142  BURDO'S  EXPLORATION. 

M.  Burdo's  stay  at  Asaba  was  short,  and  he  was 
soon  once  more  on  the  river,  passing  Abijaga  on  the 
left  bank,  the  Lander  islands,  and  the  Ojona  islands. 
At  Ibbah,  in  latitude  7°  6'  north,  he  halted.  Ibbah  is 
a  stronghold  of  Islamism,  though  situated  in  negro-land; 
and  the  language  spoken  by  the  people  is  Houssa, 
which  very  nearly  resembles  Arabic.  The  scenery  on 
quitting  Ibbah  is  of  great  beauty  and  grandeur.  The 
banks  of  the  river  rise  on  either  side  to  a  vast  height 
— sheer  walls  of  granite ;  and  through  these,  gazing 
upward,  the  voyager  beholds  the  strip  of  sky,  bright 
blue  by  day,  purple  and  set  with  stars  at  night;  while 
the  rushing  of  the  river  through  the  rocky  gorge  is 
the  only  sound  that  breaks  the  silence  and  deep  calm 
of  the  scene. 

Not  long  after  leaving  Ibbah  a  great  misfortune 
befell  the  traveller — namely,  the  desertion  of  the 
whole  of  his  men  with  the  exception  of  three.  The 
cause  of  this  unfaithfulness,  probably,  was  fear  on  the 
part  of  the  men  at  the  prospect  of  the  unknown 
Benueh — the  final  goal  of  the  expedition. 

M.  Burdo's  situation  was  now  critical  enough,  but 
he  extorted  a  promise  from  his  three  remaining  Kroo- 
men  to  remain  faithful.  This  oath  of  allegiance  the 
three  men  took  an  early  opportunity  of  breaking,  and 
the  traveller  was  left  absolutely  alone  ! 

With  forebodings  of  the  darkest  colour  M.  Burdo 
pursued  his  solitary  way  in  his  canoe,  and  having 


BURDO'S  EXPLORATION.  143 

anchored  at  dawn  near  a  village,  gathered  together  his 
chattels,  and  examined  his  arms,  prepared  for  the 
worst  that  might  happen  in  the  shape  of  hostile  re- 
ception on  the  part  of  the  villagers. 

Presently  he  beheld  a  group  of  people,  who  answered 
his  signs  by  shouting  and  laughter.  This  reception 
was,  at  best,  somewhat  doubtful ;  but  the  traveller 
had  nothing  for  it  but  to  put  a  bold  face  on  matters. 
Displaying  a  strip  of  calico  in  one  hand  and  a  bead 
necklace  in  the  other,  he  stood  up  in  the  canoe  and 
made  signs  to  the  negroes  that  he  wished  some  of 
them  to  row  for  him.  First  one  and  then  another 
got  into  the  boat,  until  M.  Burdo  had  a  crew  of  four ; 
and  thus  assisted  in  the  rowing,  in  the  space  of  half 
an  hour  the  traveller  had  reached  the  village  of 
Lokoja.  Here  he  was  met  by  a  large  crowd,  who, 
to  his  no  small  surprise,  seemed  to  be  expecting  his 
arrival.  But  his  astonishment  increased  tenfold  when 
on  landing  he  was  thus  accosted  in  English  by  a  negro, 
dressed  in  a  jacket  and  trowsers  : — 

"  This  morning  the  Bishop  of  the  Niger  was  in- 
formed by  a  fisherman  that  there  was  a  white  man 
in  these  parts.  He  has  sent  me  to  you  to  ask  if  you 
are  in  need  of  help  :  he  places  his  house  at  your  dis- 
posal and  offers  you  hospitality." 

Such  a  greeting  brought  M.  Burdo  no  less  delight 
than  astonishment ;  for  it  meant  for  him  succour  and 
sympathy  when  he  most  needed  them.      He  was  now 


144  BUBDO'S  EXPLOBATION. 

conducted  to  the  mission-station,  which  is  situated  at 
the  foot  of  Mount  Patuh,  near  Lokoja.  The  Bishop 
of  the  Niger,  Samuel  Ajai  Crowther,  was  an  old  man 
with  white  hair,  dressed  in  a  long  black  coat  and 
trowsers  to  match.  He  received  M.  Burdo  most 
cordially,  and  the  two  had  much  to  tell  each  other. 
The  bishop  strongly  urged  the  traveller  not  to  attempt 
the  Benueh  in  a  canoe,  on  account  of  its  rapid  current. 
He  advised  instead  that  M.  Burdo  should  ascend  the 
river  in  the  small  steamer  Henry  Venn,  the  property 
of  the  Church  Missionary  Society.  The  traveller,  of 
course,  at  once  saw  the  reason  of  this,  and  agreed  to 
the  bishop's  suggestion. 

Bishop  Crowther  is  stationed  at  Lokoja  during  the 
rainy  season  only ;  for  the  remainder  of  the  year  he 
lives  at  Lagos  on  the  coast.  The  natives  of  Lokoja 
belong  for  the  most  part  to  the  Mohammedan  faith, 
and  Christianity  has  not  as  yet  made  much  headway 
among  them.  A  certain  amount  of  civilized  industry 
obtains  in  the  village,  and  M.  Burdo  saw  a  small  forge, 
a  few  cloth-looms,  and  a  dye-vat. 

During  his  stay  at  Lokoja,  M.  Burdo  received  from 
Bishop  Crowther  a  narrative  of  the  chief  events  of 
his  life — a  recital  full  of  interest.  He  was  born  on 
the  Benueh,  but  remembered  little  or  nothing  of  his 
childhood.  During  an  attack  on  his  native  village, 
when  he  was  about  nine  years  old,  he  saw  his  father 
killed  before  his  eyes.      He  hung  about  his  mother, 


BURDO'S  EXPLORATION.  145 

but  was  carried  off  by  the  enemy.  For  a  year  he  suf- 
fered extreme  hardships  at  the  hands  of  his  captors, 
and  was  finally  sold  to  Portuguese  slave-dealers. 

The  boy  was  shipped  in  company  with  a  number 
of  others  in  a  vessel  with  a  double  deck,  so  constructed 
that  at  short  notice  the  whole  cargo  could  be  let 
down  into  the  sea,  in  the  event  of  the  ship  being 
boarded  by  an  English  or  French  cruiser.  In  her 
passage  from  Old  Calabar  the  ship  was  chased  by  an 
English  sloop,  captured  and  boarded.  In  the  con- 
fusion which  ensued  on  board  the  slave-ship,  the  boy 
contrived  to  conceal  himself  among  some  salt-bags,  and 
thus  escaped.  The  captain  of  the  English  cruiser  had 
his  sympathy  awakened  by  the  lad's  case,  landed  him 
at  Sierra  Leone,  and  had  him  put  to  school.  Subse- 
quently he  proceeded  to  London,  made  excellent  pro- 
gress in  his  studies,  and  was  finally  ordained  and 
sent  to  the  African  mission  field. 

Crowther  made  a  very  zealous  and  successful  mis- 
sionary ;  and  his  remarkable  fitness  for  the  work  was 
recognized  by  his  being  made  a  bishop  by  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury  in  1864,  the  region  of  the 
Upper  Niger  being  appointed  him  as  his  diocese. 

One  day,  when  Bishop  Crowther  was  preaching  in 
a  large  village,  suddenly  an  aged  woman  rushed  from 
the  crowd  and  seized  the  preacher  round  the  neck, 
crying,  "  My  son !  my  son ! "  It  was  his  mother. 
The  men  who  had  slain  Crowther's  father  had  not 

(04)  10 


146  JBUBDO'S  EXPLORATION. 

thought  it  worth  their  while  to  take  the  mother,  and 
she  had  escaped.  For  nearly  thirty  years  she  had 
been  in  search  of  her  son,  wandering  from  tribe  to 
tribe,  and  had  at  last  found  him  thus — a  bishop  !  She 
passed  the  remainder  of  her  life  in  peace  and  comfort, 
gently  tended  to  her  latest  days  by  her  son.  Such 
is  the  story  of  Samuel  Ajai  Crowther. 

M.  Burdo  embarked  on  the  little  steamer  Henry 
Venn  in  company  with  Bishop  Crowther  and  Mr. 
J.  Ashcroft,  agent  of  one  of  the  missionary  societies. 
After  leaving  Lokoja,  Duck  Island  and  Oromay  were 
passed,  and  presently  the  mouth  of  the  Benueh  was 
entered.  The  negroes  give  the  name  of  Neehu,  or 
Leehu,  to  this  river ;  the  Mussulmans  call  it  Baiki 
N'Ruwa — that  is,  White  Water;  while  the  Niger  they 
call  Fari  N'Ruwa,  or  Black  Water. 

Igbegbe,  a  village  of  evil  notoriety  for  its  traffic  in 
slaves,  is  situated  at  the  junction  of  the  two  rivers. 
As  you  ascend  the  Benueh,  or  Schadda,  navigation  is 
rendered  difficult  and  dangerous  by  the  numerous 
sandbanks,  and  the  captain  of  the  Henry  Venn  had 
constantly  to  take  soundings,  besides  keeping  the 
most  vigilant  look-out  ahead.  Even  thus,  the  steamer 
once  ran  aground  near  the  Harriet  Islands ;  but  her 
paddle-wheels  being  reversed,  she  was  not  long  in 
being  again  free.  Large  numbers  of  alligators  were 
seen  on  the  sandbanks,  basking  in  the  sun,  with 
gaping  jaws  and  hideous  gleaming  teeth. 


BURDO'S  EXPLORATION.  147 

On  the  following  day  Imaha  was  reached,  situated 
on  a  small  creek  about  half  a  mile  from  the  main 
river.  The  king  of  Imaha  was  absent  from  his 
capital,  engaged  in  laying  siege  to  Amara,  higher  up 
the  river.  The  party  therefore  remained  only  one 
day  here,  and  then  proceeded  towards  Amara,  the 
steamer  casting  anchor  within  a  short  distance  of  the 
besieged  town.  Two  canoes  came  alongside,  and  a 
chief,  seated  in  one  of  them,  announced  to  the 
strangers  that  King  Kpanaki  was  willing  to  see  them. 
It  was  Bishop  Crowther's  intention  to  establish,  if 
possible,  a  mission  among  King  Kpanaki's  subjects. 

On  reaching  the  king's  camp,  M.  Burdo  was  sur- 
prised at  the  degree  of  order  and  military  discipline 
maintained  among  the  troops,  who  were  all  drawn  up 
in  regular  battalions  according  to  the  several  tribes  of 
which  the  army  was  composed.  A  band  of  natives, 
playing  on  tom-toms,  drums,  and  bamboo  fifes,  con- 
ducted the  strangers  to  the  king's  presence,  who 
received  them  seated  on  a  sort  of  rude  throne,  con- 
structed of  mat-work  supported  on  stakes.  Wooden 
seats  were  placed  for  the  strangers. 

King  Kpanaki  was  between  thirty  and  forty  years 
old,  of  a  pure  negro  type,  with  a  severe  expression  of 
face.  On  his  head  he  wore  a  leather  cap  surmounted 
by  a  plume  of  white  feathers,  numerous  rings  adorned 
his  fingers,  and  about  his  waist  was  wound  a  broad 
band  of  scarlet  cloth. 


148  BURDO'S  EXPLORATION. 

Bishop  Crowther  stated  the  object  of  his  visit, 
telling  the  king  that  his  (Kpanaki's)  father  had 
expressed  a  wish  to  see  the  Christian  religion  intro- 
duced among  his  people.  The  bishop  then  went  on  to 
say  that  the  God  of  the  Christians  forbade  war  such 
as  Kpanaki  was  now  carrying  on  with  his  neighbours. 
To  this  the  king  answered,  that  he  desired  to  respect 
his  father's  wishes,  but  that  he  could  not  discontinue 
the  war. 

M.  Burdo  then  told  of  the  desire  on  the  part  of 
Europeans  to  trade  with  the  king,  to  exchange  the 
manufactures  of  England  and  France  —  clothes, 
weapons,  iron,  and  copper — for  the  products  of  Africa, 
— for  ivory,  gold,  and  palm  oil ;  adding  that  such  a 
commerce  could  not  be  initiated  with  a  people  immersed 
in  war  and  rapine. 

Then  King  Kpanaki  proposed  to  call  his  chiefs 
together  to  take  into  consideration  the  question  of 
making  peace  with  the  foe.  For  a  little  it  seemed 
likely  that  peaceful  counsels  might  prevail,  when 
suddenly  a  great  uproar  was  heard  in  the  camp,  in 
the  midst  of  which  a  man  entered  unbidden  the  hut 
in  which  this  scene  was  being  enacted. 

The  new-comer  was  N'Dako,  the  captain  of  the 
king  of  Bida — a  man  notorious  for  his  boldness,  his 
activity  in  the  slave-trade,  and  his  hatred  of  white 
men.  His  arrival  put  an  entirely  altered  complexion 
on  matters,  and  rendered  the  position   of   M.   Burdc, 


B  UBDO  'S  EXPLORA  TION.  149 

Mr.  Ashcroft,  and  Bishop  Crowther  extremely  critical. 
N'Dako  had  soon  won  over  the  king  to  his  way  of 
thinking,  and  the  strangers  were  told  that  they  must 
at  once  depart  from  the  camp  and  give  up  all  thought 
of  penetrating  further  into  King  Kpanaki's  territory. 
Hostile  looks  now  greeted  the  strangers  on  all  sides, 
outside  the  uproar  increased,  and  swords  were  drawn 
and  flashed  threateningly.  M.  Burdo  deemed  that 
not  a  moment  was  to  be  lost  in  escaping,  and  he  made 
a  way  for  himself  and  his  companions  through  the 
mob  of  soldiers,  who  seemed  more  than  half  ready  to 
fall  upon  the  strangers.  But  they  had  soon  reached 
the  river-bank,  and  were  presently  again  seated  in 
their  canoe.  Meanwhile  King  Kpanaki  was  preparing 
to  lead  his  soldiers  to  the  sacking  of  Amara. 

M.  Burdo  now  parted  from  Bishop  Crowther,  the 
latter  returning  in  the  steamer  to  the  Niger.  The 
parting  was  with  mutual  regret,  for  M.  Burdo  had 
conceived  for  the  black  bishop  a  regard  and  respect 
equally  sincere.  Bishop  Crowther  placed  in  the 
traveller's  hands  a  letter  for  the  King  of  the  Belgians, 
which  in  due  course  was  faithfully  delivered. 

The  traveller  now  pursued  his  journey  accompanied 
by  one  follower  only — the  faithful  Ben  Ali — guide 
and  interpreter.  His  resources  were  coming  to  an 
end,  but  he  was  resolved  to  travel  on  as  long  as  they 
held  out. 

The  sources  of  the  river  Benueh  still  await  a  dis- 


150  BURDO'S  EXPLORATION. 

Coverer,  and  the  complete  and  final  survey  of  this 
mysterious  stream  will  probably  supply  a  key  to  not 
a  few  problems  of  African  exploration. 

On  the  right  side  of  the  Benueh,  near  its  confluence 
with  the  Niger,  lies  the  country  of  Igbira-Panda, 
which  marches  with  Oketa.  Next,  following  the 
same  bank  of  the  river,  comes  Bassa,  then  Egy, 
Doma,  and  Dotshi,  which  reaches  to  the  Murchison 
Mountains.  Akpoto  lies  on  the  left  bank ;  next 
Agadumo,  Mitshi,  Anufo,  and  Karorofan.  Then  the 
Hamaruwa  country  begins,  occupying  both  banks  of  the 
river.      Next  comes  Adamawa,  with  its  capital,  Yola. 

The  Mussulman  power  has  a  strong  hold  on  the 
Benueh  and  Upper  Niger  territory.  Its  chief  centre 
is  Sokoto,  situated  on  a  tributary  of  the  Niger — 
the  river  Fadam.  The  followers  of  Mohammed,  led 
by  the  fierce  chief  Fodie,  invaded  this  region,  and 
making  terrible  havoc  among  the  natives,  took  pos- 
session of  the  country  intermediate  between  Soudan 
and  the  Benueh.  It  is  extremely  doubtful  whether 
the  Mussulman  faith,  which  has  been  thus  grafted  on, 
or  in  many  cases  has  superseded,  the  idolatry  of  the 
original  possessors  of  the  land,  will  do  anything  to 
further  civilization  and  a  gentler  life  in  Central 
Africa.  The  appearance  upon  the  scene  of  the  fol- 
lowers of  the  Prophet  has  as  yet  brought  with  it 
only  rapine,  conflagration,  and  increased  slavery. 

Among  the  people  of  Akpoto  and  Mitshi  pure  and 


BUBDO'S  EXPLOBATION.  151 

simple  barbarism  prevails.  They  are  cannibals,  idol- 
worshippers,  and  offerers  of  human  sacrifices.  Their 
religious  ceremonies  reveal  one  or  two  perverted  traits 
of  Judaism,  among  the  rest  circumcision.  Two  great 
spirits  are  worshipped  and  feared  by  them — the  spirit 
of  evil  and  the  spirit  of  good ;  but  the  former  is  held 
in  by  far  the  greater  awe.  Serpents,  alligators,  and 
all  animals  hostile  to  man,  personify  to  their  minds 
the  evil  spirit;  while  trees,  rivers,  and  stars  are  sym- 
bolical of  the  good  spirit. 

By  the  time  M.  Burdo  had  reached  Luwo,  he  found 
that  his  resources  were  almost  at  an  end.  It  was 
impossible  to  pursue  "his  explorations  further,  for  he  had 
barely  sufficient  money,  etc.,  to  carry  him  back  to  the 
coast.  At  every  village  through  which  he  had  passed 
he  had  to  pay  toll  in  the  shape  of  a  gift  to  the  king 
or  chief.  He  resolved,  therefore,  to  retrace  his  steps 
through  the  Akpoto  country,  and  presently  reached 
the  river  Okari,  which  the  traveller  judged  to  be 
identical  with  the  Bonny.  As  his  homeward  journey 
continued,  his  difficulties  increased.  His  provisions 
grew  scantier  and  more  scanty,  the  natives  proved 
hostile  and  treacherous,  fatigue  and  want  of  sleep 
weakened  him  in  body  and  spirit,  and  it  was  with 
the  greatest  effort  that  he  prevented  himself  from 
yielding  to  despair.  Added  to  these  various  dis- 
couragements, he  suffered  severely  from  the  bite  of  a 
snake,  which  caused  such  acute  pain  and  numbness 


1 52  B  URDO  'S  EXPLOBA  TION. 

that  he  could  only  continue  his  journey  at  a  very 
slow  pace. 

At  length,  to  his  great  satisfaction,  M.  Burdo  met 
his  old  friend  King  Oputa,  on  his  way  with  a  party 
of  his  people  to  conclude  a  treaty  of  peace  with  the 
king  of  Ogberi.  The  traveller  accompanied  his  black 
friend  to  Ogberi,  which  was  reached  the  same  day. 
Zumbadi,  the  king,  received  the  white  man  favourably, 
giving  him  a  separate  hut  for  his  accommodation. 
Rest  and  the  sense  of  relief  from  anxiety  soon  re- 
freshed the  traveller  in  mind  and  body. 

During  his  stay  at  Ogberi,  M.  Burdo  was  compelled 
to  be  present  at  a  human  sacrifice — a  sacred  ceremony 
which  it  would  have  perhaps  cost  him  his  own  life  to 
have  refused  to  witness.  The  ceremony  was  accom- 
panied with  a  very  carnival  of  hideous  noises  and 
barbaric  dances,  over  which  the  moonlight  shed  a 
ghastly  radiance,  until  the  whole  horrible  and  heart- 
sickening  scene  so  impressed  itself  upon  the  white 
man's  imagination  that  sleep  fled  from  his  eyes  for 
that  night. 

The  religion  of  the  people  of  Ogberi  is  a  sort  of 
compromise  between  idolatry  and  Mohammedanism. 
They  obey  the  laws  of  the  Koran  for  the  most  part, 
but  are  in  reality  polytheists.  In  regard  to  industrial 
pursuits,  cultivation  is  in  a  comparative  state  of  ad- 
vancement among  them — yams,  maize,  bananas,  the 
cassava   and    tobacco    being   grown ;    and    palm   and 


BURDO'S  EXPLORATION.  153 

bamboo  wine,  together  with  a  kind  of  beer,  manu- 
factured. 

The  natives  of  the  Benueh  region  are  for  the  most 
part  very  ill-favoured,  the  women  among  them  being 
obese  to  the  extent  of  deformity.  They  are  an  in- 
dustrious people,  on  the  whole,  and  work  in  copper 
with  no  small  skill,  while  their  pottery  displays  a 
degree  of  adornment  that  may  be  compared  to 
Egyptian  art  of  this  description. 

Quitting  Ogberi,  M.  Burdo  in  six  days  reached 
Igbegbe,  where  the  Niger  and  Benueh  meet.  Here 
he  had  an  opportunity  of  studying  the  slave-market 
in  full  operation — "  the  saddest  sight  in  the  world." 
Men,  women,  and  children  were  put  up  to  auction  and 
sold  "  like  beasts  of  burden," — the  prices  paid  varying 
from  four  pounds  to  forty. 

At  Lokay,  M.  Burdo  embarked  on  board  the  little 
steamer  Edgar,  and  arriving  at  Lagos,  took  passage 
for  Liverpool  in  the  steamer  Roquelle.  When  he 
landed  in  his  native  country — Belgium — he  had  been 
eight  months  on  his  travels ;  and  during  all  that  period, 
though  he  had  had  quite  the  usual  share  of  hardship, 
privation,  and  suffering  which  falls  to  every  traveller 
in  Africa,  he  had  never  suffered  seriously  in  health. 
A  hostile  climate,  fatigue,  fever,  incessant  anxiety,  and 
a  thousand  minor  worries,  had  left  him  physically  un- 
impaired, and  he  returned  to  Europe  with  heartfelt 
gratitude  to  Heaven  for  safety  and  restoration. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

CAPTAIN    GALLIENl's    EXPEDITION    TO    THE 
UPPER   NIGER." 

In  the  work  of  African  exploration  France  has  not 
been  inactive,  and  among  the  expeditions  projected  by 
that  nation  that  of  Captain  Gallieni  must  take  rank 
as  the  most  important,  both  in  regard  to  the  diffi- 
culties surmounted  and  the  results  obtained. 

Captain  Gallieni  had  recently  returned  from  a 
journey  of  exploration  to  southern  Senegambia,  when 
Monsieur  Briere  de  l'lsle,  the  governor  of  Senegal, 
unfolded  to  him  a  plan  for  penetrating  the  valley  of 
the  Upper  Niger  by  way  of  the  lofty  mountain-pass 
extending  between  that  great  river  and  the  Senegal. 
The  main  object  of  the  expedition  was  to  establish 
friendly  relations  with  the  native  races  partially 
made  known  to  Europeans  by  the  travels  of  Mungo 
Park,  and  to  open  up  to  the  French  frontier  colonies 
of   Medine  and  Bakel  an  outlet  to  markets  hitherto 

*  The  following  is  an  abstract  of  Captain  Gallieni's  own  narrative,  which  appeared 
in  "  Le  Tour  du  Monde." 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  155 

abandoned  to  semi-savage  tribes.  All  the  territory 
which  was  to  be  traversed,  extending  from  Medine'  as 
far  as  the  banks  of  the  Niger,  is  under  the  nominal 
sovereignty  of  Amadou,  king  of  Segou. 

Captain  Gallieni  chose  for  his  companions  in  travel 
M.  Pietri,  a  lieutenant  of  Marine  Artillery;  M.  Valliere, 
a  lieutenant  of  Marine  Infantry ;  and  MM.  Tautain 
and  Bayol,  two  young  doctors — all  men  possessing 
special  qualifications  for  the  respective  duties  they 
were  to  perform. 

Captain  Gallieni,  well  knowing  how  readily  the 
negro  races  are  affected  by  showy  spectacle,  kept  this 
point  well  in  view  in  the  equipment  of  his  expedition. 
His  escort  was  numerous  and  equipped  at  all  points, 
and  presented  a  tout  ensemble  well  calculated  to  excite 
the  wonder  and  admiration  of  the  simple  natives. 

The  month  of  January  1880  was  employed  in 
making  all  necessary  provision  for  the  journey.  At 
St.  Louis  an  immense  stock  of  presents  was  laid  in — 
the  means  of  securing  the  good  offices  of  the  tribes- 
These  comprised  coloured  stuffs  of  various  sorts — 
white  calicoes,  blue  guinea  cloth,  Indian  scarves,  gay- 
coloured  handkerchiefs,  gilt  swords,  silver-mounted 
guns,  knives,  mirrors,  musical  boxes,  little  electrical 
machines,  etc.  At  Bakel  the  finishing  touch  was 
given  to  the  preparations,  every  detail  of  which  had 
been  arranged  with  the  care  and  minuteness  so  neces- 
sary to  the  success  of  an  expedition  of  this  sort. 


156  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

On  the  30th  January  a  flag  hoisted  over  the  house  of 
the  governor  gave  the  signal  for  the  start.  MM.  Bayol, 
Pietri,  and  Valliere  embarked  on  the  steamboat  Dakar, 
to  which  were  attached  the  boats,  and  launches  laden 
with  the  heavy  freight  which  had  to  be  transported 
as  far  as  Bakel  by  water.  Captain  Gallieni  himself 
and  Dr.  Tautain,  who  had  been  detained  at  St.  Louis 
at  the  last  moment,  set  out  a  little  later  on  board  the 
Sivan,  accompanied  by  the  governor  and  his  lieuten- 
ant. M.  Briere  de  l'lsle  had  followed  with  the  keenest 
interest  all  the  preparations  for  the  expedition,  and 
now  accompanied  the  travellers  as  far  as  Podor,  as  a 
last  mark  of  the  importance  which  he  attached  to  the 
success  of  the  mission. 

It  was  with  feelings  of  deep  emotion  that  the 
travellers  pressed  for  the  last  time  the  hands  of  their 
friends,  whom  some  of  them  might  perhaps  never  see 
again.  But  the  thoughts  of  the  explorers  were  ere 
long  turned  in  other  directions  by  the  stir  and  bustle 
on  board,  by  the  cries  of  the  negroes,  and  by  the  new 
scenes  through  which  they  were  passing.  On  the 
right  lay  the  country  of  the  Trarzan  Moors,  and  on 
the  left  the  territory  of  the  OuolofF  negroes. 

Ouoloff  is  subject  to  the  French  government,  and 
pays  tribute  to  a  considerable  amount.  The  Trarzas, 
on  the  opposite  bank  of  the  river,  are  among  the  most 
turbulent  of  the  Moorish  tribes ;  but  an  important 
trade  is  carried  on  between  them  and  the  French  at 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENJ'S  EXPEDITION.  157 

Dagana — the  Trarzas  bartering  their  gums  for  guinea 
cloth,  a  cheap  blue  stuff,  and  other  products  of  Euro- 
pean manufacture.  In  the  winter  they  quit  the 
banks  of  the  river — very  much  to  the  satisfaction  of 
the  black  river  tribes,  who  have  frequently  to  suffer 
at  the  hands  of  these  shameless  robbers — return  to 
the  desert,  and  resume  their  wandering  and  adventur- 
ous life,  in  which  war  and  pillage  play  the  most  im- 
portant part. 

The  first  important  halt  which  M.  Gallieni  and  his 
companions  made  along  the  river  was  at  Dagana, 
situated  on  the  banks  of  the  Senegal,  and  almost 
entirely  hidden  among  thick  trees.  From  one  end  of 
the  veranda  of  a  house  there  appeared  every  now 
and  then,  as  the  travellers  drew  near,  the  black  heads 
of  pretty  little  monkeys,  of  a  gray,  green-coloured 
species,  which  abound  in  the  forests  of  Fouta,  and  are 
a  source  of  infinite  amusement  to  the  soldiers  of  the 
forts. 

The  town  itself  presented  a  lively  sight.  The 
traders,  standing  on  the  steps  of  their  white,  square- 
shaped  houses,  disputed  eagerly  with  the  Moors,  whose 
black,  flowing,  uncombed  hair  gave  them  a  strangely 
savage  appearance.  In  the  middle  of  the  path  camels 
reclined  with  long  stretched-out  legs,  and  regarded 
with  startled  eyes  all  that  was  going  on  around  them. 
The  Dakar  only  stopped  long  enough  at  Dagana  to 
land    some    of    its    black    passengers,  and   in   a  few 


158  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

minutes  was  again  on  its  course  for  Podor,  followed 
closely  by  the  Swan. 

Podor  was  reached  on  the  evening  of  January  31. 
It  was  regarrisoned  by  the  French  with  a  strong 
force  in  1854,  in  the  face  of  the  hostility  of  the 
Toucouleurs  of  Toro.  The  fort  itself  consists  of  two 
parallel  streets,  one  of  which,  shady  with  fine  trees, 
borders  the  Senegal.  Behind  rise  the  pointed  roofs 
of  the  native  villages  of  Podor  and  Tioffy. 

On  the  3rd  of  February,  the  governor,  M.  Briere 
de  l'lsle,  gave  the  mission  their  last  instructions. 
"  Go,"  he  said.  "  Be  energetic,  be  resolute.  Forget 
the  trials  which  await  you,  to  remember  only  the 
interests  of  your  country.  You  are  about  to  initiate 
a  grand  undertaking,  and  I,  for  my  part,  shall  use 
every  endeavour  to  see  that  you  are  soon  followed  in 
the  path  which  you  will  open  up  to  civilization  and 
the  influence  of  the  French  nation.  My  good  wishes 
and  those  of  the  whole  colony  go  with  you.  God 
prosper  your  noble  and  patriotic  efforts." 

On  the  morning  of  the  4th,  the  voyagers  re-em- 
barked, on  board  the  Dakar,  which  was  to  take  them 
as  far  as  the  bank  of  the  Mafou,  at  which  point  they 
parted  with  the  steamer. 

Among  the  inconveniences  of  Senegalese  life,  the 
greatest  is  the  difficulty  of  communication,  during  a 
large  part  of  the  year,  between  the  chief  town  of 
the  colony  and  the  settlements  situated  beyond  Podor. 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  161 

Steamboats  cannot  ascend  further  than  the  shallows 
of  the  Mafou,  and  recourse  must  be  had  to  flat- 
bottomed  boats,  which  often  consume  a  whole  month 
in  reaching  Medine.  Sometimes  the  black  sailors  who 
have  charge  of  these  craft  land  on  the  banks,  fasten 
a  long  rope  to  the  masts,  and  thus  drag  the  boats 
along.  Often,  however,  the  thick  vegetation  of  the 
river-banks  renders  this  device  impracticable,  and 
branches  and  long  poles  have  then  to  be  used.  Under 
conditions  such  as  these  it  will  easily  be  imagined 
how  slow  and  monotonous  progress  becomes,  especially 
when  the  numerous  shallows  and  rapids  which  ob- 
struct both  the  lower  and  upper  Senegal  are  re- 
membered. 

Toro  was  now  reached,  one  of  the  states  annexed 
in  a  measure  by  the  French  from  the  powerful  and 
turbulent  confederation  of  Fouta.  The  hostility  dis- 
played by  the  Toucouleurs,  and  their  predilection  for 
plunder,  obliged  the  French  to  make  frequent  ex- 
peditions against  these  wandering  tribes.  As  one 
result  of  this  policy,  Toro  became  an  independent  state 
under  the  protectorate  of  the  French,  and  is  governed 
by  a  young  chief,  Amadou  Abdoul,  who  is  now  almost 
a  naturalized  Frenchman,  and  who  visited  the  Paris 
Exhibition  of  1878. 

The  other  bank  of  the  river  forms  the  boundary- 
line  of  the  territory  of  the  Brackna  Moors,  who  carry 
on  a  brisk  trade  in  gums  with  the  fort  at  Podor. 

(94)  1 1 


162  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

The  navigation  was  slow  and  difficult  for  some 
days.  Owing  to  the  thickly-wooded  character  of  the 
banks,  the  boats  could  not  be  towed  along  by  ropes 
secured  to  the  masts.  Captain  Gallieni  and  his  com- 
rades relieved  the  tediousness  of  the  journey  by 
shooting  at  the  alligators  asleep  on  the  surface  of  the 
stream.  The  huge  creatures  plunged  suddenly  beneath 
the  water,  leaving  a  thin  stream  of  blood  behind  them, 
which  sufficiently  showed  that  some  of  the  shots  had 
not  been  without  effect.  On  the  summits  of  the 
banks  black-headed  monkeys  and  birds  of  many- 
coloured  plumage  fled  at  the  approach  of  the  trav- 
ellers. 

On  the  9th,  the  villages  of  Cascas  and  Doungel 
were  passed ;  and  soon  after,  not  without  difficulty  and 
much  loss  of  time,  the  difficult  passage  of  Djoule'diabd 
Here,  however,  the  banks  being  unwooded,  the  method 
of  towing  could  again  be  put  into  practice. 

The  next  halt  was  made  at  Salde',  where  a  stock  of 
fresh  provisions  was  laid  in.  Boussea  was  presently 
in  sight — a  place  inhabited  by  the  most  unruly  tribe 
of  all  the  Toucouleur  confederacy.  Its  chief,  Abdoul 
Boubakar,  surrounded  by  an  energetic  band  of  young 
warriors,  living  entirely  by  plunder,  does  his  utmost  to 
excite  against  the  French  the  more  peaceable  villages 
situated  along  the  river  with  whom  that  nation  has 
commercial  relations. 

The  river  continued  to  be  of  imposing  breadth.    On 


CAPTAIN  OALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  163 

the  Fouta  side  the  banks  are  well  wooded.  As  far  as 
Matam  many  traces  of  cultivation  were  observed.  On 
the  14th,  Orefonde',  the  capital  of  all  the  Toucouleur 
confederacy,  was  reached.  Here  are  usually  held  the 
assemblies  of  fanatic  Mussulmans,  who  combine  against 
the  French  and  their  native  'proteges.  These  wild 
convocations  result  in  little  more  than  talk  and  up- 
roar, and  generally  break  up  without  arriving  at  any 
serious  determination. 

Plenty  of  hippopotami  were  now  met  with,  the 
voyagers  being  made  aware  of  their  propinquity  by 
loud  snortings.  They  frequently  rose  up  out  of  the 
river  a  few  yards  from  the  boats,  which  ran  some 
risk  of  being  swamped  by  them.  Fire  was  opened 
upon  these  huge  river-horses,  but  with  not  much 
result ;  for  when  wounded  the  creatures  plunged  im- 
mediately to  the  bottom  of  the  river. 

Notwithstanding  the  activity  of  the  black  sailors, 
Matam  was  not  reached  until  the  18th.  It  is  situ- 
ated on  the  confines  of  Boussea  and  Damga,  the  last 
state  of  Fouta.  Damga  is  a  more  populous  region  than 
any  that  had  been  crossed  thus  far.  The  inhabitants 
are  a  peaceable  people,  who  desire  nothing  better  than 
to  be  delivered  from  the  continual  raids  of  Abdoul 
Boubakar. 

The  vegetation  now  became  more  luxuriant  and 
beautiful.  Trees  of  various  species  abounded — palms 
of  different  varieties   and  tamarinds  of  great  height 


164  CAPTAIN  GALL1ENVS  EXPEDITION. 

and  elegant  form  being  especially  numerous.  The 
picturesque  foliage  of  the  trees,  the  hills  and  red- 
brown  rocks  which  formed  a  background  to  the 
vegetation,  and  villages  set  more  closely  together,  gave 
to  the  country  a  very  bright  and  lively  look,  and 
made  a  pleasant  relief  to  the  eye  after  the  long 
monotony  of  the  forest. 

On  the  morning  of  the  25th  the  expedition 
arrived  at  Tuabo,  the  residence  of  the  tunka  or  chief 
of  Guoy.  A  few  hours  later  Bakel  was  in  sight, 
recognizable  by  its  high  towers  crowning  the  hills 
around  the  fort.  Next  the  white  and  massive  build- 
ings were  visible,  and  at  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon 
the  voyagers  cast  anchor,  happy  to  quit  the  narrow 
and  difficult  passage  through  which  they  had  been 
passing  for  the  last  twenty  days.  The  first  stage  of 
the  voyage  was  accomplished,  and  the  journey  was 
henceforth  to  be  a  land  one. 

The  fort  of  Bakel  dates  from  the  beginning  of  the 
century.  It  replaced  the  various  factories  formerly 
established  in  that  region  by  the  Indian  Company,  to 
prosecute  the  gold  trade  of  Galam  and  Bambouk.  It 
is  at  the  present  day  a  fine  building,  restored  by  the 
exertions  of  the  governor,  Briere  de  l'lsle,  composed  of 
two  large  wings  connected  by  a  smaller  building. 
The  officers'  quarters  are  airy  and  commodious,  while 
those  of  the  men  are  equally  comfortable  and  well 
arranged.      In  fact,  nothing  has  been  left  undone  to 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  167 

minimise  the  discomforts  of  life  in  a  country  abound- 
ing in  malarious  marshes  and  hostile  in  every  way  to 
the  health  of  European  residents. 

This  station  is  the  most  important  on  the  river,  and 
carries  on  an  active  trade  in  gums,  horses,  gold,  ostrich 
feathers,  skins,  etc.  The  commandant,  M.  Soyer,  re- 
ceived the  expedition  with  every  mark  of  hospitality, 
and  some  time  was  spent  by  Captain  Gallieni  and  his 
officers  in  reorganizing  the  large  and  somewhat  hetero- 
geneous forces — men,  cattle,  and  baggage — under  their 
command. 

By  the  evening  of  the  6th  March  everything 
was  again  ready  for  the  road,  and  on  the  follow- 
ing morning  at  daybreak  a  start  was  made.  The 
long  cortege  had  hardly  set  out  when  a  loud  roaring 
was  heard,  and  Lieutenant  Valliere  exclaimed,  "  A 
lion !  It  cannot  be  far  off.  Is  it  a  good  omen,  or 
not  ? " 

"  It  comes  from  the  right,"  replied  Dr.  Tautain 
jestingly. 

"  However  it  be,"  said  Captain  Gallieni,  "  Forward's 
the  word." 

The  first  halt  was  made  at  the  village  of  Golmi, 
the  forest  of  Goura  having  been  crossed  during  the 
march,  which  lay  along  the  left  bank  of  the  Senegal. 
Everything  was  ready  for  a  bivouac,  and  the  ass- 
drivers  began  to  prepare  their  rice  and  couscous,  under 
the  direction  of  the  chef  de  cuisine  Yoro.      Yoro  was 


168  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI' S  EXPEDITION. 

an  important  personage  in  the  expedition,  and  merits 
more  than  a  passing  mention. 

He  was  a  Toucouleur  of  the  Laobe  tribe ;  a  people 
held  in  slight  esteem  by  their  countrymen,  by  reason  of 
their  gaining  their  livelihood  by  cutting  wood,  digging 
ditches,  and  making  pestles  for  crushing  the  meal  for 
couscous.  In  many  parts  of  Africa  the  greatest 
disdain  is  manifested  for  the  working  castes,  such  as 
weavers,  rope-makers,  and  smiths.  The  Laobes,  who 
are  spread  throughout  all  Senegal,  live  apart,  and 
marry  among  themselves,  but  are  nevertheless  one  of 
the  most  prosperous  tribes  in  the  country. 

Yoro  was  of  a  type  frequently  met  with  among 
the  native  races  who  have  taken  on  a  varnish  of 
civilization.  He  was  vain,  a  liar,  and  a  thief ;  but 
he  had  also  good  qualities.  He  was  a  capital  fellow 
in  a  crisis.  He  got  the  breakfast  ready  with  a 
marvellous  expedition,  and  could  prepare  for  dinner 
the  most  tempting  dishes.  He  had  been  in  turn 
tirailleur,  scullion,  muleteer,  sailor ;  always  greedy, 
always  miserable,  and  always  absolutely  devoted  to 
his  master.  When  evil  fortune  befell,  Yoro  would  sell 
his  dearest  possession  in  order  to  satisfy  our  desires. 
More  than  once  he  proved  his  devotion  to  Captain 
Gallieni  by  exposing  his  body  to  the  bullets  of  hostile 
natives  in  defence  of  his  master.  At  Nango,  where 
Gallieni  was  struck  down  with  fever,  Yoro  sat  day 
and  night  by  the  sick  man's  bed,  and  nursed  him 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI 'S  EXPEDITION.  169 

with  the  gentleness  of  a  mother.  It  is  no  wonder, 
therefore,  that  Captain  Gallieni  speaks  of  his  faithful 
attendant  in  terms  of  affectionate  esteem. 

The  expedition  left  Golmi  on  the  8th,  and  arrived 
next  at  Guoy,  a  province  of  Bakel.  Here  long  chains 
of  hills  stretch  towards  the  south ;  but  on  the  other 
side  of  the  river  the  country  is  flat,  and  the  marigots 
are  the  only  obstacles  which  interrupted  the  march. 
By  marigots  is  meant  those  small  affluents  of  the 
Senegal  which,  dry  as  a  rule  for  the  most  part  of  the 
year,  overflow  in  the  rainy  season  and  form  deep  and 
wide  channels.  After  crossing  the  river  Faleme',  a 
beautiful  stream  which  discharges  a  considerable 
volume  of  water  into  the  Senegal,  the  expedition 
entered  Kamera.  The  inhabitants  of  Kamera  are  a 
peaceable  and  hard-working  people,  who  bear  the 
cognomen  of  the  "  Jews  of  Soudan."  Kame'ra  is 
under  the  protectorate  of  France.  The  surrounding 
country  presents  no  features  of  special  interest — forest 
and  brushwood,  varied  here  and  there  by  a  small 
stream,  and  in  the  vicinity  of  the  villages  fields 
planted  with  millet. 

On  the  morning  of  March  11th,  the  camp  was 
pitched  before  the  village  of  Gore",  an  important  centre 
inhabited  by  Bambarras,  who  escaped  the  sword  of 
Amadou  on  the  occasion  of  his  last  raid  upon  Kaarta 
in  1874.  Dama,  the  chief  of  Gore,  gave  the  travellers 
a    very    hearty    reception,    presenting    Gallieni    with 


170  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI 'S  EXPEDITION. 

beef,  mutton,  milk,  etc. ;  and  to  do  special  honour  to 
his  guests,  he  arranged  for  their  diversion  a  tom-tom, 
or  military  fete. 

Gallieni  and  his  comrades  were  conducted  with 
much  ceremony  by  the  king's  chief  ministers  to  the 
scene  of  action — a  band  of  musicians  leading  the 
way,  and  making  on  their  rude  instruments  the  most 
indescribable  uproar.  Dama  himself  was  seated, 
cross-legged,  on  a  leopard's  skin  stretched  on  the 
ground.  About  him  were  grouped  his  warriors  in 
various  attitudes,  armed  with  guns  and  lances. 

The  night  was  dark,  and  the  vast  crowd,  itself  as 
black  as  the  night,  and  lit  up  only  by  sundry  torches, 
presented  a  strange  and  most  fantastic  appearance. 
Captain  Gallieni  was  seated  beside  the  king,  and 
presently  the  dance  began.  It  was  engaged  in  by 
men  only,  and  these  the  most  nobly  born  and  the 
bravest  in  the  state.  The  tom-toms,  a  kind  of  long 
drums,  which  give  the  name  to  the  ceremony ;  trum- 
pets of  hollow  wood,  uttering  a  harsh  and  monotonous 
sound ;  and  little  flutes,  played  in  a  rather  melodious 
fashion — these  formed  the  orchestra.  The  trumpets 
emitted  three  notes  only,  always  the  same,  and  all  sad 
and  mournful,  producing  a  most  melancholy  effect 
upon  the  ear. 

While  the  music  was  at  its  height,  the  dancers 
arranged  themselves  in  many  various  attitudes  in  the 
flaring  light  of  the  torches,  each  warrior  grasping  his 


CAPTAIN  G ALLIEN VS  EXPEDITION.  171 

gun  or  sabre.  Now  they  stooped,  now  tossed  their 
weapons  in  the  air,  now  pirouetted,  and  now  threw 
their  arms  above  their  heads ;  always  dancing  in 
time,  their  eyes  flashing  with  a  warlike  fire.  The 
dancers  won  the  enthusiastic  applause  of  the  specta- 
tors, and  the  fite  terminated  with  a  display  of  coloured 
lights  which  Captain  Gallieni  caused  to  be  burned  for 
the  wonder  and  delight  of  the  simple  natives. 

On  the  12th  March,  the  explorers  camped  on  the 
bank  of  the  river  at  the  village  of  Ambidedi,  under 
the  shadow  of  three  noble  bread-fruit  trees,  whose 
trunks  measured  between  fifteen  and  twenty  yards 
in  circumference,  and  whose  leafy  boughs  made  an 
impervious  screen  against  the  sun.  Towards  evening 
shots  were  heard  on  the  right  bank.  It  was  one  of 
those  affrays  which  are  continually  taking  place 
between  the  Moors  and  the  Sarracolets  of  Guidi- 
makha,  the  origin  of  which  is  always  the  same — the 
wish  on  the  part  of  the  Moors  to  possess  themselves 
of  their  neighbours'  herds,  and  the  determination  of 
the  rightful  owners  to  defend  their  property. 

After  traversing  a  very  fertile  region,  planted  with 
beautiful  fields  of  millet,  the  village  of  Bongourou 
was  reached  on  the  14th,  and  shortly  after  Medine, 
which  is  two  hundred  and  sixty  leagues  from  the 
mouth  of  the  Senegal,  and  situated  near  the  cataract 
of  Felou.  Here  Captain  Gallieni  halted  for  some 
days,  to  reorganize  and  strengthen  the  expedition. 


172  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

At  this  time,  it  being  the  dry  season,  the  country 
around  Medine  was  dry  and  parched  and  almost 
destitute  of  pasturage.  The  camp  was  pitched  to  the 
south  of  the  village,  under  the  shadow  of  two  or 
three  lofty  trees,  on  a  plain  encircled  by  rocky  hills. 
The  Senegal  was  not  far  off,  the  main  river  alone 
being  able  to  supply  sufficient  water  for  the  wants  of 
the  expedition.     All  the  smaller  streams  were  dry. 

The  site  of  the  camp  was  remarkable  in  several 
respects.  A  semicircle  of  lofty  rocks,  absolutely 
vertical,  formed  the  background.  The  face  of  the 
rock  was  broken  by  frequent  cavities,  the  haunt  of 
innumerable  monkeys,  and  of  hyenas  that  come  down 
at  night  into  the  very  streets  of  Medine*  and  utter 
their  hoarse  cries  under  the  walls  of  the  fort. 

From  the  camp  could  be  seen  also  the  "  Lion 
Rocks ; "  so  called  from  their  peculiar  formation — 
huge  masses  of  rock  resembling  crouching  lions. 

By  this  time  the  expedition,  which  had  been 
strengthened  from  stage  to  stage  during  the  journey, 
presented  a  really  imposing  array.  The  camp  was 
divided  into  sections,  each  under  the  command  of  its 
own  leader,  each  bearing  conspicuous  its  own  flag. 
Thus  far  the  most  perfect  order  had  been  preserved 
in  every  department ;  and  never  before,  probably,  had 
the  natives  beheld  so  numerous  and  well-equipped  a 
caravan. 

From  Medine*  to  Bafoulabe*  the  valley  of  the  Sene- 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION  173 

gal  rises  gradually  from  an  elevation  of  about  thirty 
to  nearly  one  hundred  yards.  Beyond  Boukaria, 
transport  by  water  is  no  longer  practicable — the 
course  of  the  river  being  here  broken  by  numerous 
small  falls  and  rapids,  not  to  mention  the  cataract  of 
Gouina. 

While  Gallieni  remained  at  Medine',  the  first  diffi- 
culty which  he  had  experienced  with  his  followers 
arose.  The  Toucouleurs,  with  characteristic  fickleness, 
had  lost  the  enthusiasm  for  the  journey  which  they 
had  at  first  shown,  and  began  to  think  they  were  not 
sufficiently  remunerated  for  their  labours.  The  seeds 
of  a  conspiracy  were  being  sown,  and  the  malcontents, 
urged  on  by  two  or  three  leaders,  threatened  to  aban- 
don the  white  man  unless  more  favourable  terms  were 
granted  them.  Captain  Gallieni's  action  in  this  crisis 
was  sufficiently  prompt  and  energetic  to  quell  at  once 
the  threatened  outbreak.  Nevertheless,  he  could  not 
but  feel  some  slight  uneasiness  at  the  idea  of  being 
deserted  by  his  native  escort — a  danger  which  so 
frequently  menaces  the  African  explorer,  and  which, 
by  causing  delay  and  other  mortifications,  so  imperils 
the  success  of  an  expedition. 

By  the  21st  March  the  travellers  were  again 
ready  for  the  journey.  Such  of  the  asses  as  had  been 
disabled  during  the  march  from  Bakel  to  Medine'  were 
replaced  by  others ;  fresh  native  horses  had  been 
purchased,  as  well  as  a  herd  of  cattle  to  provide  fresh 


174  CAPTAIN  GALLIENVS  EXPEDITION. 

meat  for  the  expedition.  The  chiefs  of  Medine"  gave 
a  dinner  in  honour  of  Captain  Gallieni  and  his  com- 
rades on  the  eve  of  their  departure.  Finally,  on  the 
morning  of  the  start  the  explorers  were  treated  to  a 
serenade  by  the  chief  musician  of  Medine".  The  per- 
formance was  sufficiently  diverting,  for  it  consisted  of 
a  medley  of  native  and  French  airs,  the  latter  selected 
from  the  operas  of  "  La  Grande  Duchesse  "  and  "  La 
Fille  de  Madame  Angot."  The  effect  of  the  lively 
French  music  sung  by  the  swarthy  troubadour  to  the 
accompaniment  of  his  rude  guitar  was  singular  and 
amusing. 

The  first  difficulty  which  the  caravan  had  to  en- 
counter occurred  almost  at  the  gates  of  Medine".  The 
valley  of  the  Senegal,  enclosed  at  this  point  between 
two  walls  of  cliffs,  is  completely  barred  by  a  mass  of 
rocks  known  as  the  plateau  of  Felou,  behind  which 
stretches  the  beautiful  plain  of  Logo.  Here  there  are 
the  genuine  traces  of  a  dike  which  once  held  a  por- 
tion of  the  waters  of  the  Senegal,  and  formed  a  large 
lagoon,  having  for  its  bed  the  plain  of  Logo.  On 
the  Medine'  side  the  plateau  terminates  suddenly  and 
abruptly  in  rocky  pinnacles. 

The  Senegal  has  broken  down  this  dike  on  the  right 
side,  and  has  channelled  for  itself  a  straight  course 
towards  the  steep  cliffs ;  but  a  line  of  rocks  still  bars 
the  progress  of  the  river,  and,  by  holding  the  waters 
within  the  plain  of  Logo,  forms  a  magnificent  sheet 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  175 

of  water  stretching  as  far  as  Boukaria.  That  barrier, 
hollowed,  worn,  polished,  sculptured  in  a  fashion,  by 
the  friction  of  the  waters,  presents  a  most  picturesque 
appearance — vaults  from  which  the  water  drips  drop 
by  drop,  cascades,  caverns  with  inaccessible  recesses, 
caldrons  shaped  like  upturned  cones  by  pebbles  of 
adamantine  hardness,  which  are  kept  in  continual 
circular  motion  by  separate  currents. 

The  plateau  of  Felou  did  not  prove  so  great  an 
obstacle  to  progress  as  Captain  Gallieni,  from  previous 
knowledge  of  the  locality,  had  anticipated.  For  it 
was  now  the  dry  season,  and  by  following  the  empty 
water-courses  channelled  in  the  plains,  it  was  not 
very  difficult  to  reach  the  slope  leading  to  the  plain  of 
Logo. 

On  the  morning  of  the  22nd  the  village  of 
Saboucire  was  reached,  the  scene  of  a  brilliant  foray 
made  by  Colonel  Reybaud  against  the  Malinke's  of 
Logo,  who  had  rebelled  against  the  authority  of 
Sambala,  an  old  ally  of  the  French. 

After  halting  at  several  intermediate  stations,  in- 
cluding Malou  and  Dinguira — the  latter  a  beautiful 
village,  well  built  and  well  cultivated — the  travellers 
reached  the  famous  cataract  of  Gouina,  the  crash  of 
whose  waters  was  heard  long  before  the  fall  itself  was 
in  sight.  In  the  winter  season  the  Gouina  cataract 
discharges  into  the  great  basin  below  an  immense 
volume  of  water ;  and  the  current  is  so  strong  that 


176  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

hippopotami  are  often  swept  over  the  fall  from  the 
upper  waters  and  found  crushed  among  the  rocks 
below.  In  the  dry  season  the  appearance  of  the 
cataract  is  less  imposing  but  more  graceful.  The 
rocks,  rising  above  the  current,  present  a  smooth  and 
polished  surface ;  and  the  water  gleams  and  glistens 
among  the  crevasses  like  strings  of  iridescent  pearls, 
falling  in  little  cascades  on  the  successive  terraces  of 
rock  in  a  way  that  entrances  the  gaze. 

The  camp  was  pitched  over  against  Foukhara,  a 
little  village  built  on  an  island  in  the  middle  of  the 
stream — a  somewhat  inconvenient  position  by  reason 
of  the  innumerable  hippopotami  which  infest  the 
Senegal,  and  which  have  to  be  frightened  off  by  the 
nightly  beating  of  drums. 

Two  days  were  occupied  in  the  journey  from 
Foukhara  to  the  Talahari — the  route  followed  leading 
through  a  veritable  desert.  At  this  stage  the  leader 
was  attacked  with  violent  fever ;  but,  thanks  to  the 
prompt  and  efficacious  treatment  of  Dr.  Bayol,  he  was 
soon  able  to  accomplish  the  last  stage  of  the  journey 
to  Bafoulabd  The  village  of  Makhina  was  passed, 
and  the  left  bank  of  the  Baring  reached. 

Bafoulabe'  stands  at  the  confluence  of  the  two 
streams  which  form  the  Senegal — a  name  which  sig- 
nifies "  two  rivers."  The  more  important  of  these  is 
the  Bating,  or  Black  River.  It  flows  from  the  south, 
and  has  its  source  in  the  mountain  masses  of  Fouta 


CAPTAIN  G ALLIEN VS  EXPEDITION.  177 

Djalon.  The  other  confluent  is  the  Bakhoy,  or  White 
River,  flowing  from  the  east. 

Bafoulabe  had  been  chosen  as  the  site  of  the  first 
of  those  stations  which  the  French  desired  to  establish 
as  far  as  the  Joliba,  the  great  river  of  the  negroes. 
On  the  morning  of  the  2nd  April,  Captain  Gallieni 
had  the  satisfaction  of  beholding  all  his  forces,  men 
and  animals,  drawn  up  in  good  order  on  the  little 
plateau  which  was  to  serve  as  the  site  of  the  new 
station  of  Bafoulabe. 

Captain  Gallieni  had  now  entered  a  country  in 
which  the  faculty  of  the  diplomatist  was  as  essential 
as  that  of  the  explorer.  His  directions  were,  that  he 
should  follow  the  valley  of  the  Bakhoy,  which  is  the 
shortest  route  to  the  Niger.  Time  pressed,  and  it  was 
expedient  to  reach  the  Joliba  before  winter.  Accord- 
ingly, the  order  was  given  to  leave  Bafoulabe'  on  2nd 
April. 

The  march  led  through  forest  country  thickly 
planted  with  lofty  and  beautiful  trees.  Some  of  these 
were  of  singular  shape  and  appearance.  Their  trunks, 
curiously  indented  at  the  base,  formed,  as  it  were, 
niches,  with  regularly-shaped  walls,  which  became 
gradually  merged  in  the  tree  itself  at  a  distance  of 
four  or  five  yards  above  the  ground.  One  of  these 
giants  of  the  forest  measured  nearly  twenty  yards  in 
circumference. 

Birds    of    varied    and    brilliant   plumage   fluttered 

(94)  12 


178  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

among  the  leafy  boughs  overhead,  making  a  lively  and 
pleasant  music.  Among  the  most  conspicuous  of  these 
was  a  bird  resembling  an  English  pheasant,  its  head 
adorned  with  a  pretty  black  crest,  its  plumage  a 
beautiful  dark  blue. 

The  left  bank  of  the  Bakhoy  was  followed  as  closely 
as  possible ;  but  the  luxuriant  vegetation  prevented 
any  careful  examination  of  its  course.  Night  fell 
before  the  camp  was  pitched,  which  occasioned  some 
disorder.  But  a  circumstance  which  served  still 
further  to  increase  the  confusion,  and  to  place  the 
caravan  in  actual  danger  for  a  few  moments,  was  a 
fire  which  broke  out  a  little  way  from  the  camp  almost 
before  the  different  sections  were  fairly  settled.  It 
was  the  dry  season,  which  the  natives  utilize  in  clear- 
ing their  fallow  fields  of  parasitic  vegetation.  It  was 
not  a  little  startling  to  see  the  flames  rushing  heaven- 
wards so  close  to  the  camp,  reddening  the  sky  and 
horizon.  The  high  grass  blazed  with  marvellous 
rapidity,  crackling  and  roaring  with  a  noise  that 
could  be  heard  miles  away.  The  gigantic  baobab 
trees,  with  their  branches  resembling  human  arms, 
seemed  to  tremble  with  terror,  and  presented  a  most 
fantastic  appearance  in  the  wavering  glare  of  the 
flames. 

The  wind  was  blowing  towards  the  camp,  and  not 
a  minute  was  to  be  lost  if  the  threatened  danger  was 
to  be  avoided.     Already  some  of  the  asses,  terrified 


sy*Y   •puma 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  181 

by  the  noise,  had  thrown  off  their  loads  and  broken 
loose  into  the  forest.  A  number  of  the  men,  providing 
themselves  with  large  and  leafy  branches,  advanced 
towards  the  fire.  Leaping,  shouting,  dancing,  gesticu- 
lating, like  true  negroes  as  they  were,  they  had  soon 
mastered  the  flames,  at  least  over  a  sufficient  area  to 
preclude  all  immediate  danger  to  the  camp. 

On  the  following  day  the  explorers  reached  the 
village  of  Kala,  after  skirting  the  mountain  of  Douka 
and  crossing  a  number  of  dry  tributaries  of  the  main 
river.  The  river  Bakhoy,  from  Bafoulabe  as  far  as 
its  confluence  with  the  Baoule',  flows  through  a  wide 
valley  sloping  from  east  to  west  and  flanked  on  each 
side  by  mountain  masses. 

On  the  4  th  the  village  of  Niakale*  Cirea  was 
reached,  and  the  camp  pitched  beneath  a  beautiful 
fig-tree.  Here  a  somewhat  disagreeable  incident  befell 
Captain  Gallieni.  The  young  chief,  Gara  Mamady 
Cire',  whom  the  leader  had  commanded  to  follow  him 
to  the  Niger,  arrived  on  the  5th  with  a  large  follow- 
ing of  armed  men,  contrary  to  Captain  Gallieni's 
injunctions.  The  chief  began  first  to  complain  that  to 
him,  the  son  of  a  great  chief,  had  been  given  a  less 
beautiful  horse  than  Alpha  Sega,  the  interpreter,  had 
received.  Then  he  declared  that  he  could  not  follow 
Captain  Gallieni  unless  he  were  allowed  to  take  with 
him  forty  men  of  his  village.  Captain  Gallieni  under- 
stood perfectly  that  this  untractable  warrior  had  no 


182  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

great  desire  to  trust  himself  in  an  unknown  country, 
dangerous  to  traverse  by  reason  of  the  continual  war- 
fare which  prevailed.  He  told  the  chief  in  plain  and 
vigorous  terms  that  he  might  take  himself  off  home 
again  as  soon  as  he  pleased ;  to  which  Gara  replied 
with  equanimity,  assuring  the  white  man  that  he  was 
depriving  himself  of  an  important  ally  in  leaving  him, 
Gara,  behind. 

Gallieni  and  his  lieutenants  had  scarcely  forgotten 
the  disagreeable  feeling  produced  by  this  incident, 
when  an  episode  of  a  more  amusing  character  occurred. 
A  sheep  had  just  been  purchased  from  a  Malinke' ;  and 
Yoro  the  cook  had  already  begun  to  cut  up  and  pre- 
pare the  animal  for  dinner,  when  the  late  proprietor 
returned,  rending  the  air  with  the  most  piteous  cries, 
and  regretting  in  the  bitterest  terms  the  bargain  he 
had  just  concluded.  He  bewailed  and  gesticulated, 
exclaiming,  "  Is  it  possible  that  I  could  have  allowed 
myself  to  be  so  taken  in  ?  What !  one  little  piece 
for  an  animal  which  lives,  which  walks,  which  eats, 
which  drinks  !  Is  it  right — is  it  just  ? "  It  is  im- 
possible, Captain  Gallieni  writes,  to  convey  the  manner 
and  the  complaints,  each  more  ludicrous  than  the 
other,  of  the  aggrieved  Malinke';  the  simple  truth 
being,  that  he  wished,  over  and  above  his  price,  a 
calabash  of  brandy,  which  he  at  last  got. 

After  quitting  Niakale  Cirda,  the  march  became 
difficult   and   painful,  leading   through   a  long  gorge 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  185 

where  the  ground  was  broken  and  rugged  with  huge 
blocks  of  rock.  The  camp  was  next  pitched  at  the 
village  of  Solinta,  by  the  ford  of  the  Dioube-  Ba. 

The  sun  had  hardly  set  when  the  hyenas  began  to 
prowl  around  the  camp  with  their  hoarse  and  melan- 
choly howling,  their  lean  flanks  and  hideous  forms 
revealed  strangely  in  the  light  of  the  camp-fires.  They 
approached  quite  close,  attracted  by  the  debris  of  the 
supper.  A  discharge  of  shot  was  not  sufficient  to 
frighten  off  these  frequent  and  objectionable  guests 
of  every  African  bivouac. 

Presently,  too,  a  disturbance  among  the  asses,  fol- 
lowed by  a  loud  roaring,  warned  the  travellers  of  the 
presence  of  another  night  foe — namely,  lions.  The 
shots  had,  however,  apparently  frightened  these  last 
visitors,  and  their  roaring  ere  long  ceased.  The  lions 
of  Senegambia  are  maneless.  They  rarely  attack 
men ;  but  it  was  seldom  that  our  travellers  pitched 
their  camp  without  the  roaring  of  these  kings  of  the 
forest  coming  to  disturb  their  slumbers.  One  of  the 
sharp-shooters,  however,  was  on  one  occasion  attacked 
by  a  lion,  and  only  escaped  by  climbing  a  large  tree, 
the  thick  branches  and  dense  foliage  of  which  served 
him  for  a  refuge  for  the  night. 

At  the  village  of  Solinta,  where  the  caravan  halted, 
the  attention  of  Captain  Gallieni  and  his  comrades 
was  arrested  by  a  large  furnace  of  remarkable  con- 
struction.   It  was  built  in  the  earth,  almost  cylindrical 


186  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

in  shape,  and  widening  towards  the  centre.  This 
furnace  was  employed  in  the  manufacture  of  iron  for 
making  swords,  knives,  and  other  utensils  used  by  the 
natives  of  the  region. 

The  neighbouring  mountains  supply  the  minerals 
for  the  furnace  in  great  abundance.  Many  workmen 
are  employed  in  working  it.  It  is  furnished  with  a 
number  of  mouths,  to  which  are  fitted  bellows  worked 
by  hand.  One  other  mouth,  much  larger  than  the 
rest,  is  kept  open  when  the  operation  of  smelting 
the  metal  is  about  to  begin.  When  a  sufficient 
quantity  of  metal  is  ready  for  smelting,  all  the  smiths 
of  the  village  give  themselves  to  the  work  at  the  same 
time.  The  occasion  becomes  in  some  sort  a  festival 
as  well  as  a  labour,  for  the  workmen  are  plied  with 
copious  draughts  of  maize-beer.  Songs  and  shrill 
cries  accompany  the  work,  the  roaring  of  the  fires 
swells  the  din,  and  every  man  bears  a  hand  at  the 
bellows  until  the  metal  is  ready.  Captain  Gallieni 
remarks  that  a  very  similar  method  of  iron-forging 
obtains  in  the  Pyrenees. 

The  8th  of  the  month  was  spent  by  the  expedition 
at  Soukoutaly,  the  chief  of  which,  a  fine  old  man  of 
frank  and  resolute  bearing,  evinced  much  satisfaction 
when  Captain  Gallieni  explained  to  him  his  projects 
in  regard  to  the  Upper  Niger.  The  old  chief  was 
greatly  pleased  when  the  white  leader  said  that  he 
had  often  heard  of  him,  and  presented  him,  on  behalf 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENVS  EXPEDITION.  187 

of  M.  Briere  de  l'lsle,  with  a  handsome  mantle  and  a 
gun  mounted  with  silver. 

At  Soukoutaly  Captain  Gallieni  received  further 
proof  of  the  hatred  in  which  the  Toucouleurs  are  held 
in  these  regions.  The  chief  men  of  Tomora,  a  country- 
subject  to  the  king  of  Segou,  sought  Gallieni,  asking 
if  they  and  all  their  people  might  be  allowed  to  cross 
the  river  and  take  up  their  abode  within  the  protection 
of  the  new  station  of  Bafoulabd  Captain  Gallieni 
answered,  that  it  was  not  part  of  his  scheme  to  mix 
himself  up  with  the  affairs  of  Amadou,  but  that  his 
petitioners  could  do  as  they  pleased.  The  men  under- 
stood what  was  meant,  and  Captain  Gallieni  after- 
wards learned  that  they  had  put  their  project  into 
execution. 

The  empire  of  Amadou  is  now  but  the  relic  of  the 
vast  conquests  of  the  prophet  El  Hadj  Oumar,  and  is 
fast  losing  power  and  prestige.  The  peoples  of  Mal- 
inke'  and  Bambarra  have  long  groaned  under  its 
intolerable  yoke,  and  only  wait  an  opportunity  of 
breaking  free  from  the  domination  of  the  Mussulman, 
the  worst  enemy  of  both  the  white  and  black  races  in 
this  part  of  Africa. 

Journeying  across  a  fertile  region,  the  explorers 
presently  arrived  at  Badumbe.  Badumbe'  is  surrounded 
by  a  wall  of  solid  masonry — one  of  the  most  remark- 
able constructions  met  with  by  the  travellers  in 
Africa.       The    object    of    this  embattlement   was   no 


188  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

doubt  to  protect  the  inhabitants  against  the  attacks 
of  the  Toucouleurs.  In  shape  it  approached  a  quadri- 
lateral, and  was  naturally  protected  on  one  side  by 
the  Bakhoy,  on  two  other  sides  by  affluents  of  that 
river,  and  on  the  fourth  by  the  mountains.  The 
enclosure  was  a  polygon,  containing  a  round  tower 
furnished  with  a  sally-port.  The  wall  of  the  tower 
followed  a  zigzag  course,  which  enabled  those  holding 
the  fort  to  open  a  cross  fire  as  well  as  a  direct  fire. 
Lofty  parapets  allowed  also  of  a  fire  being  kept  up 
from  without. 

The  people  of  Badumbe'  received  the  expedition 
with  much  cordiality,  regarding  them  as  the  enemies 
of  the  Toucouleurs.  One  brought  a  sheep,  another  a 
chicken,  a  third  a  calabash  of  milk,  a  fourth  a  bag  of 
corn  for  Captain  Gallieni's  horse — all  vied  in  showing 
attention  to  the  strangers. 

At  Badumbe'  the  caravan  remained  one  day,  en- 
camped on  a  hot  and  desolate  plain,  under  the  very 
inadequate  shade  of  two  or  three  acacia  trees.  The 
white  men  were  an  object  of  much  curiosity  to  the 
natives  of  the  place ;  their  clothes,  and  especially  their 
trowsers,  exciting  much  wonder  and  amusement.  One 
of  the  young  negresses  asked  to  be  allowed  to  touch 
Captain  Gallieni's  bare  arm,  that  she  might  assure 
herself  that  the  flesh  was  the  same  as  her  own. 

The  nearer  the  explorers  approached  to  the  Niger, 
the  difficulties  of  the  journey  increased.     The  further 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENVS  EXPEDITION.  189 

they  advanced,  the  slighter  their  knowledge  grew  of 
the  ground  they  were  traversing,  and  the  less  prepared 
were  they  to  meet  the  obstacles  of  the  march, 

Beyond  Badumbe  the  valley  widens  considerably 
and  becomes  more  undulating.  The  Bakhoy  describes 
towards  the  north  the  arc  of  a  circle,  and  the  path 
leading  to  Fangalla  follows  the  circumference  of 
that  arc. 

An  elephant-hunter  of  Badumbe'  was  found  to  act 
as  guide  to  the  expedition  as  far  as  Fangalla.  The 
route  led  through  a  forest  where  it  was  often  neces- 
sary to  cut  a  path  for  the  animals  with  the  sword. 

Fangalla  was  once  the  capital  of  Farimboula,  and  its 
populous  villages  stretched  along  the  banks  of  the 
Bakhoy  and  over  the  islands  which  dot  its  waters. 
The  king  of  Fangalla  was  rich  in  herds  and  flocks, 
and  the  people  were  prosperous  and  brave.  But  thirty 
years  ago  a  horde  of  Mussulmans  swept  down  on 
Fangalla,  plundered  its  inhabitants,  harried  their 
cattle,  devastated  the  fields,  and  retired,  leaving  be- 
hind them  desolation  and  ruin.  It  may  be  said, 
generally,  that  wherever  the  followers  of  the  Prophet 
pass  in  Africa,  misery  and  ruin  follow  in  their  wake. 

On  the  morning  of  the  13th  the  caravan  reached 
the  falls  of  Bily.  At  this  point  in  its  course,  the 
river,  confined  between  two  rocky  cliffs,  falls  in  suc- 
cessive cascades  to  form  the  cataract,  which  is  of  con- 
siderable height  and  volume,  and  resembles  the  Gouina 


190  CAPTAIN  G  ALLIEN  VS  EXPEDITION. 

fall.  The  water  falls  vertically ;  the  rocks  are  smooth 
and  polished,  and,  worn  in  many  places  by  the  current 
and  the  pebbles,  form  little  subterranean  streams 
which  unite  their  several  waters  with  the  main  cata- 
ract as  it  tumbles  with  a  crash  into  the  basin  below. 

Beyond  the  Bily  fall  the  path  pursued  by  the 
travellers  led  again  along  the  river,  and  was  with 
difficulty  followed,  owing  to  the  stony  character  of  the 
ground.  The  country,  bare  in  certain  parts,  was 
covered  in  others  with  absolutely  virgin  forest ; — 
acacias  of  very  graceful  shape ;  tamarinds  of  dense 
and  beautiful  foliage;  khadd  trees,  whose  falling  leaves 
foretold  the  approach  of  winter;  and  fig-trees,  on 
which  parasitic  roots  drooped  to  the  ground  from  the 
higher  branches  like  the  cordage  of  a  ship.  The 
whole  forest  was  densely  interlaced  with  creeping 
plants  which  hung  their  festoons  from  tree  to  tree, 
and  proved  a  formidable  obstacle  to  the  progress  of  the 
caravan,  obliging  the  constant  use  of  hatchet  and 
sword.  The  horsemen  were  ever  and  anon  compelled 
to  bend  low  to  avoid  the  branches  and  threatening 
thorns.  The  mules,  becoming  frequently  entangled 
among;  the  boughs,  found  the  march  a  most  difficult 
one ;  but  as  the  good-natured  old  Sambo,  one  of 
Captain  Gallieni's  native  companions,  said,  laughing 
his  great  laugh,  while  the  leader  was  watching  the 
baggage  with  an  anxious  eye,  "  Fear  nothing,  captain ; 
believe  me,  the  cargo  is  solid." 


FOREST      NEAR      THE       BILY       FALLS.       ON       THE       BAKHOY. 


Page  iqo. 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  193 

On  the  14th  the  passage  of  the  Bakhoy  began. 
The  first  section  of  the  caravan  led  the  way ;  all  the 
ass-drivers,  carrying  their  baggage  on  their  heads, 
entered  the  stream,  taking  care  not  to  fall  on  the 
slippery  rocks  of  the  ford.  The  baggage  having  been 
got  safely  across,  the  asses  had  to  be  led  over.  Then 
followed  the  muleteers  and  spahis,  each  leading  his 
beast  by  the  bridle  and  carrying  his  saddle  on  his 
head.  Lastly  came  Captain  Gallieni,  with  naked  feet 
and  legs,  feeling  his  way  with  a  stick. 

By  mid-day  the  crossing  was  successfully  accom- 
plished, and  the  whole  camp  was  treated,  in  honour  of 
the  event,  to  a  double  ration  of  meat  and  rice.  Across 
this  broad  river  there  had  been  transported,  in  the 
course  of  a  few  hours,  six  hundred  and  fifty  loads  of 
baggage  and  nearly  four  hundred  horses,  mules,  oxen, 
and  asses. 

During  the  afternoon  Captain  Gallieni  took  the 
opportunity  of  the  halt  to  send  for  three  of  the  ass- 
drivers  who  had  frequently  of  late  signalized  them- 
selves by  their  laziness  and  insubordination.  The 
caravan  was  in  the  middle  of  the  desert,  and  the  poor 
wretches  cast  themselves  at  Captain  Gallieni's  feet  and 
implored  pardon,  declaring  that  for  the  future  they 
would  be  models  of  obedience.  Two  of  them  were 
willing  to  resume  their  duties  as  ass-drivers ;  but  the 
third,  Mamadou  Si,  a  turbulent  and  surly  Toucouleur, 
refused.     This  man  had  already  shown  at  Bakel  his 

(94)  13 


194  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI 'S  EXPEDITION. 

insubordinate  spirit,  and  at  Medine"  had  instigated  a 
conspiracy  that  had  all  but  deprived  Captain  Gallieni 
of  twenty  of  his  followers.  On  that  occasion  the 
leader  restrained  himself  from  doing  as  he  would  have 
liked ;  but  at  Toukoto  he  seized  the  opportunity  of  a 
complaint  which  Mamadou  Si  made  against  the  chief 
of  his  section,  to  expel  the  unruly  member  from  the 
camp — a  severe  but  deserved  and  necessary  punish- 
ment. 

The  sojourn  of  the  explorers  at  Goniokori  was 
fraught  with  special  interest,  as  will  be  presently  seen. 
Goniokori  is  composed  of  three  separate  villages  built 
at  intervals  of  three  or  four  hundred  yards,  in  a  plain 
of  great  fertility  and  planted  with  beautiful  bread- 
fruit and  cedar  trees.  The  grand  mountain  mass  of 
Badougou  lies  to  the  north,  the  peak  of  Gotekrou  to 
the  east,  a  rocky  plateau  extends  to  the  south,  while 
the  Bakhoy  bounds  the  plain  on  the  west.  The  three 
villages  together  do  not  contain  more  than  five  hun- 
dred inhabitants,  but  represent,  nevertheless,  the  capi- 
tal of  Fouladougou,  that  extensive  territory  which  em- 
braces all  the  country  between  Kaarta-Be'le'dougou,  and 
Manding. 

Captain  Gallieni  was  much  surprised  at  the  poverty 
and  barbarity  of  the  king  and  people  of  Goniokori. 
He  had  expected  to  find  a  rich  and  powerful  chief, 
for  he  was  the  descendant  of  an  ancient  line  of  kings. 
The  reception  which  he  gave  to  the  leaders  of  the  expedi- 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  197 

tion  was  a  mixture  of  indifference  and  awe.  Its  great 
numbers  evidently  caused  him  more  fear  than  joy ;  and 
although  Captain  Gallieni  endeavoured  to  make  it 
clear  to  him  that  the  white  men  had  come  to  assist 
him  against  his  foes  the  Toucouleurs,  the  chief  did  not 
seem  to  comprehend,  and  his  attitude  remained  one  of 
mingled  resignation  and  imbecility. 

This  singular  chief  had  a  brother  who  governed  one 
of  the  three  villages.  This  brother  was  as  noisy  and 
demonstrative  as  the  other  was  reserved  and  indif- 
ferent. From  the  excitement  of  his  speech  and  ges- 
tures it  was  easily  seen  that  this  fellow  was  drunk. 
An  old  negress,  also  manifestly  the  worse  for  dolo* 
followed  him  like  his  shadow,  speaking  in  a  thick 
and  inarticulate  fashion,  graced  with  many  hiccoughs. 

Finding  that  he  could  make  nothing  of  the  royal 
drunkard,  Captain  Gallieni  addressed  himself  to  an 
old  man  who  had  been  regarding  the  white  men  with 
an  air  of  much  interest,  and  who  now  pushed  his  way 
through  the  crowd  of  women  and  children  whom  curi- 
osity had  collected  around  the  strangers. 

This  old  man  informed  Captain  Gallieni  and  his 
companions  that  on  the  spot  where  the  camp  was 
now  pitched  had  stood  the  house  of  Mansa  Numma, 
the  king  of  all  Fouladougou,  then  a  rich  and  power- 
ful monarch.  "  One  day — I  was  not  born  then," 
continued  the  man — "a  man  of  strange  appearance 

*  An  intoxicating  drink  made  of  fermented  millet. 


198  CAPTAIN  G  ALLIEN VB  EXPEDITION. 

appeared  on  the  left  bank  of  the  river,  in  front  of  the 
village.  He  called  out  in  an  unknown  language,  and, 
seeing  that  no  one  understood  his  words,  plunged  into 
the  river  and  landed  in  the  midst  of  the  chief  men 
who  were  gathered  on  the  bank.  One  gave  him  a 
house  for  the  night,  another  brought  couscous  and 
milk,  and  all  treated  him  hospitably.  In  depart- 
ing, the  white  chief  left  behind  him  fine  presents. 
He  showed  himself  kind  and  generous,  and  amply- 
repaid  the  king  for  his  hospitality  by  presenting  him 
with  a  beautiful  silver  bracelet.  That  bracelet  had 
always  been  worn  by  the  head  of  the  royal  family, 
until  the  fatal  day  when  El  Hadj  pillaged  the 
treasure  of  the  chiefs  of  Fouladougou,  and  carried 
away  the  bracelet  to  Segou."  The  speaker  concluded 
by  saying  that  the  white  men  whom  he  was  address- 
ing were  richer  than  the  one  who  had  come  long  ago, 
and  that  they  would  show  themselves  equally  gen- 
erous by  replacing  the  lost  bracelet,  and  by  making 
other  presents  still  more  beautiful. 

This  speech  was  listened  to  by  Captain  Gallieni 
and  his  companions  with  the  greatest  interest.  It 
was  the  first  traces  they  had  come  upon  of  Mungo 
Park,  their  predecessor  in  these  regions,  and  the  ex- 
plorers experienced  a  legitimate  satisfaction  in  resting 
on  the  spot  which  the  illustrious  English  traveller 
had  chosen  for  his  encampment  sixty-five  years  ago, 
and  where   no    European   had  been  since.      Captain 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  199 

Gallieni,  having  consulted  the  narrative  of  that  pioneer 
of  African  exploration,  discovered  a  trifling  detail 
omitted  by  the  old  Malinke' — namely,  that  the  white 
man  had  been  robbed  by  the  grandfather  of  the  then 
reigning  king. 

The  next  halt  was  made  at  Manambougou,  a  little 
village  enclosed  between  the  peak  of  Gote"krou  and  a 
lofty  mountain  range,  and  lying  at  the  bottom  of  a 
lovely  valley.  The  fortunate  inhabitants  of  this 
beautiful  little  corner  of  the  world  are  very  different 
in  character  from  their  savage  neighbours  of  Gonio- 
kori,  being  docile,  quiet,  and  remarkably  well  clothed. 
The  chief,  accompanied  by  several  of  his  suite,  came 
to  welcome  the  white  men,  with  much  natural  dig- 
nity— a  noble  old  man,  with  a  tranquil  and  intelli- 
gent face,  wearing  a  long  and  very  becoming  cloak, 
a  turban  on  his  head,  and  bearing  a  fine  carved  staff 
in  his  hand.  His  costume  and  bearing  recalled  in  no 
slight  degree  the  figures  of  the  Bible  patriarchs. 
Captain  Gallieni  learned  that  the  old  chief  had  trav- 
elled a  great  deal,  and  that  he  was  well  beloved  by 
his  people. 

Beyond  Manambougou  the  march  became  very  diffi- 
cult. It  led  up  a  rocky  incline,  debouching  on  a 
plateau  sloping  towards  the  east,  and  covered  with 
ferruginous  gray-stone,  slippery  for  the  feet,  and  offer- 
ing a  very  toilsome  path  for  the  animals. 

At  length  the  Kegneko  was  gained.      This  small 


200  CAPTAIN  GALLIENVS  EXPEDITION. 

stream  is  from  fifteen  to  twenty  yards  broad,  and 
about  fifteen  feet  in  depth.  The  men,  under  the 
direction  of  Sergeant  Sadioka  and  Corporal  Benis, 
began  to  construct  an  impromptu  bridge  across  the 
river.  Two  large  trees  were  felled,  one  on  each  side 
of  the  stream,  and  their  trunks,  falling  crosswise, 
formed  a  sort  of  letter  X.  Along  the  arms  of  the 
letter  branches  were  laid  longitudinally,  and  on  these 
again  were  spread  leafy  shoots  of  the  bamboo,  together 
with  ferns  and  grass.  When  the  whole  was  covered 
with  turf,  a  bridge  was  formed  sufficiently  strong  and 
secure,  across  which  the  whole  caravan  passed  in 
safety. 

A  long  and  difficult  march  brought  the  travellers 
to  Bondoro,  a  village  in  the  Kita  country,  and  they 
were  presently  at  the  base  of  the  famous  mountain 
of  Kita.  An  hour  later,  the  young  King  Tokonta 
met  the  strangers  at  the  entrance  of  his  village,  and 
bade  them  welcome  with  great  courtesy. 

Tokonta  had  got  ready  for  the  accommodation  of 
his  guests  a  spacious  hut,  which,  however,  was  found 
to  be  too  near  the  village.  The  camp  was  accordingly 
pitched  at  a  distance  of  three  or  four  hundred  yards 
off,  in  the  middle  of  the  plain.  The  first  goal  of  the 
expedition  had  now  been  reached,  and  the  leader 
judged  it  expedient  to  rest  his  followers  and  himself 
for  a  few  days,  before  taking  the  route  for  the  Niger. 

Kita — or  rather  Makadiambougo,  for  Kita  is  the 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI  'S  EXPEDITION.  203 

name  of  the  whole  region — may  be  called  the  key  of 
all  this  part  of  the  Soudan,  and  in  a  commercial  aspect 
occupies  a  position  of  the  greatest  importance.  On 
one  side  it  commands  the  road  to  the  Niger,  and  on 
the  other  that  leading  to  the  territories  of  the  Moors. 

The  object  of  the  expedition  at  Kita  was  to  con- 
clude a  treaty  with  the  king,  which  should  place  the 
country  under  the  protectorate  of  France.  Captain 
Gallieni  hoped  to  establish  at  Makadiambougo  a 
military  and  commercial  station,  which  might  open 
up  a  way  to  central  Soudan.  He  began,  therefore, 
without  delay  negotiations  with  Tokonta.  But  he 
was  met  at  the  outset  with  difficulties,  unexpected  but 
easy  enough  of  explanation. 

Kita  is  very  near  Mourgoula,  the  Toucouleur 
fortress  which  holds  in  subjection  all  the  Malinke 
population,  from  Manding  as  far  as  Fouladougou. 
On  the  other  hand,  Nioro,  ruled  by  Mountaga,  the 
brother  of  the  king  of  Segou,  is  not  far  off  towards 
the  north.  Thus  the  king  of  Kita  finds  himself  most 
inconveniently  situated  between  two  enemies,  and  has 
often,  to  avoid  ruin  to  himself,  to  separate  his  cause 
from  that  of  the  other  Malinke'  peoples,  and  to  take  no 
part  in  their  attempts  at  revolt.  He  must  take  every 
occasion  of  proving  his  fidelity  to  Amadou.  It  is 
easily  understood,  therefore,  why  Tokonta  hesitated 
about  allying  himself  to  the  French,  the  declared  ene- 
mies of  the  Toucouleurs.      "  No  doubt,"  said  he,  "  the 


204  CAPTAIN  GALLTENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

French  are  rich  and  powerful ;  but  they  are  far  away 
from  my  country." 

Days  passed  in  these  negotiations.  Tokonta  main- 
tained a  silent  and  reserved  attitude,  though,  in  truth, 
he  was  in  great  agitation  as  to  the  outcome  of  the 
parley.  Alpha  Sega,  the  interpreter  to  the  expedi- 
tion, received  carte-blanche  in  regard  to  presents  with 
which  to  win  over  the  chief.  The  interviews  between 
Alpha  Sega  and  the  native  notables  were  accompanied 
by  a  large  consumption  of  dolo,  or  maize  beer,  of 
which  all  the  Malinke  nations  are  extremely  fond ; 
and  often  did  the  interpreter  return  at  night  to  Cap- 
tain Gallieni,  to  report  the  result  of  the  day's  parley, 
with  his  utterance  much  impaired  by  the  severe  labours 
of  the  day. 

At  length  Captain  Gallieni  and  his  lieutenants  hit 
upon  a  device  to  bring  the  wavering  Tokonta  to  a  final 
decision.  The  chief  was  at  feud  with  the  neighbour- 
ing village  of  Goubanko,  and  the  French  leader  threat- 
ened, unless  the  king  came  to  terms,  to  treat  with  the 
enemy.  An  envoy  was  actually  despatched  to  Gou- 
banko to  carry  out  this  project.  Tokonta  became 
alarmed,  and,  after  a  little  further  parley,  agreed  to 
sign  the  treaty. 

On  the  25th  April,  the  king  of  Kita,  surrounded 
by  his  sons  and  the  chiefs  and  notables,  set  his  sig- 
nature to  the  document  which  placed  all  the  Kita 
territory  under  the  protectorate  of  France,  and  au- 


CAPTAIN  OALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  205 

thorized  that  nation  to  erect,  on  any  site  they  might 
choose,  such  stations  and  establishments  as  they  should 
judge  fit. 

Captain  Gallieni  desired  to  celebrate  this  signal 
episode  in  the  history  of  the  mission  in  some  fitting 
way,  and  at  the  desire  of  Tokonta  a  military  spectacle 
was  arranged  by  the  expedition. 

All  the  preliminaries  being  ready,  the  camp  pre- 
sented a  quite  brilliant  appearance.  The  tirailleurs 
and  the  spahis,  wearing  their  handsome  Oriental  cos- 
tumes, formed  one  side  of  a  square.  The  muleteers 
and  ass-drivers  had  also  exchanged  their  travel- worn 
clothes  of  every  day  for  bright  white  and  blue  jackets, 
which  were  kept  stowed  away  for  grand  occasions 
such  as  the  present.  The  black  sailors  did  duty  as 
artillerymen,  taking  up  their  position  at  one  angle  of 
the  square.  The  leaders  themselves  had  donned  hand- 
some cloaks  of  white  flannel,  slashed  with  black ;  and 
in  a  word,  everything  was  done  to  excite  the  imagina- 
tion of  the  Malinkes,  who  crowded  from  every  quarter 
to  be  present  at  the  spectacle.  As  for  Alpha  Sega, 
the  interpreter,  he  shone  resplendent  in  a  grand  Turk- 
ish military  costume,  covered  with  gold  braiding — a 
dress  which  was  destined  for  Amadou,  but  which  was 
lent  to  Alpha  Sega  for  this  occasion.  In  the  centre 
of  the  square  a  tall  flagstaff  was  raised,  from  which 
fluttered  a  large  tricolor :  and  Captain  Gallieni  re- 
cords how  the  hearts  of  himself  and  his  companions 


206  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

beat  at  beholding  their  national  colours  floating  over 
the  plains  of  Kita,  the  possession  of  which  secured  to 
France  all  the  valley  of  the  Bakhoy,  the  direct  route 
to  the  Niger. 

The  tirailleurs  executed  their  various  military  move- 
ments ;  then  the  rapid  discharge  of  the  chassepots 
excited  the  wonder  of  the  savage  spectators.  But  the 
enthusiasm  rose  to  a  height  when  the  spahis,  wearing 
their  turbans  and  beautiful  red  mantles,  curveted 
over  the  plain,  cutting  the  air  this  way  and  that  with 
their  sabres,  their  handsome  horses  at  full  gallop. 
During  these  manoeuvres  the  ass-drivers  fired  their 
guns,  and  the  small  cannons  manned  by  the  black  sailors 
kept  up  an  unceasing  fusilade.  Never  before  had 
the  onlookers  beheld  a  scene  so  striking,  and  their 
admiration  approached  stupefaction. 

Thus  the  negotiations  at  Kita  were  terminated  with 
eclat,  and  lengthy  despatches  were  sent  off  to  M. 
Briere  de  ITsle,  under  the  care  of  a  son  of  Tokonta, 
advising  him  of  the  success  of  the  mission  thus  far. 

The  departure  of  the  expedition  from  Kita  took 
place  on  April  27th.  The  beasts  of  burden  had  suf- 
fered much  of  late  from  sore  backs,  and  several  of  the 
mules  and  asses  were  dying  every  day.  Twenty-one 
animals  died  in  all,  and  their  loads  had  to  be  distri- 
buted among  the  surviving  mules  and  asses,  already 
reduced  almost  to  the  extremity  of  weakness.  For- 
tunately, a  rich  plain  was  presently  reached,  which 


IF-  — 
m 

IT*',  J       ■  ■ 


CAPTAIN  QALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  209 

afforded  an  ample  supply  of  grass ;  and  soon  after, 
the  caravan  halted  on  the  banks  of  the  Bandingho. 

Dr.  Tautain  immediately  set  about  devising  mea- 
sures for  crossing  the  river.  The  passage  looked  im- 
practicable. Steep  banks,  between  thirty  and  forty 
feet  high,  formed  a  lofty  barrier,  blocked  up  with 
great  masses  of  gray  stone.  The  right  bank,  rising  in 
a  peak,  was  composed  of  stiff"  red  clay,  almost  as  hard 
as  rock.  The  left  bank  was  a  little  less  difficult  of 
access,  and  led  to  a  ford  not  very  deep,  and  sufficiently 
easy  to  cross. 

Dr.  Tautain  applied  himself  to  the  situation  with 
zeal.  The  tirailleurs  succeeded  in  making  a  sort  of 
staircase  for  the  animals  in  the  left  bank ;  but  shovel 
and  pick  were  of  little  avail  against  the  stiff"  soil  of 
the  opposite  bank,  and  the  workmen  had  to  be  con- 
tent with  constructing  a  rough  and  irregular  escalade. 

The  mules  had  now  to  be  got  across  this  stairway. 
The  muleteers,  assisted  by  the  spahis  and  tirailleurs, 
endeavoured  to  make  the  crossing ;  but  it  was  labour 
lost.  They  easily  enough  descended  the  pathway 
made  in  the  left  bank,  but  were  altogether  unable  to 
ascend  the  cliff'  on  the  right  bank.  At  this  juncture 
Sambo  came  to  the  rescue.  Disengaging  one  of  the 
long  cords  that  secured  the  loads,  he  passed  it  round 
the  croup  of  a  mule,  while  the  two  ends  were  grasped 
by  men  standing  on  the  top  of  the  bank.  A  muleteer, 
grasping  hold  of  some  bushes  which  had  contrived  to 

(94)  14 


210  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

take  root  in  that  hard  soil,  dragged  the  mule  by  the 
bridle.  At  a  given  signal,  the  poor  beast,  dragged  by 
the  bridle  and  pulled  by  the  rope  from  above,  was  at 
last  hoisted  to  the  top  of  the  cliff. 

About  mid-day  the  ford  presented  a  curious  scene; — 
one  of  the  cliffs  covered  with  animals  with  long-eared 
heads,  all  pointed  towards  the  river ;  the  other  bank 
crowded  with  the  tirailleurs  still  engaged  in  finishing 
the  escalade,  and  hard  at  work  with  pick  and  shovel ; 
mid-way  an  odd  medley  of  asses  thirstily  drinking, 
natives  assisting  in  getting  the  animals  across,  and 
doing  all  with  faces  of  almost  preternatural  gravity, — 
the  whole  picture  framed  in  by  the  great  trees  which 
covered  the  lofty  banks  of  the  Bandingho. 

At  last,  an  hour  after  sunset,  the  work  was  over 
and  the  transit  of  the  entire  caravan  completed.  No 
mishap  had  befallen,  and  the  fatigues  of  the  day  were 
quickly  forgotten  by  all  over  a  good  dinner. 

The  march  was  resumed  on  the  following  day  in 
good  order  and  in  good  spirits.  On  the  30  th  April 
the  caravan  passed  the  mountains  of  Bangassi,  the 
sight  of  which  recalled  to  the  travellers  recollections 
of  Mungo  Park,  who  makes  mention  of  this  range  in 
his  journal.  The  surrounding  country  is  desolate  and 
barren. 

The  caravan  at  this  stage  began  to  suffer  from 
thirst,  and  Alassane  and  two  others  of  the  guides  were 
sent  forward   to  search  for  water.      Fortunately  an 


CROSSING      THE       BANDINQHO. 


Page  log. 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  213 

abundant  water-course  was  discovered  not  far  off,  and 
on  its  banks  the  camp  was  pitched.  The  borders  of 
the  stream  were  covered  with  the  tracks  of  animals  of 
large  size,  among  which  were  the  prints  of  lions, 
antelopes,  and  giraffes. 

Rain  fell  in  deluges  during  the  night,  and  the 
camp  was  well-nigh  inundated.  Little  sleep  was 
enjoyed  by  any  one,  and  the  day  was  welcomed  with 
relief.  This  heavy  rainfall  warned  the  travellers  of 
the  approach  of  winter — an  uneasy  thought,  for  the 
flooding  of  the  rivers  and  creeks  would  considerably 
increase  the  difficulties  of  the  march,  while  the  damp 
malarious  weather  would,  in  all  probability,  materially 
lower  the  general  health  of  the  camp. 

Gallieni  had  ever  present  in  his  memory  that  ill- 
fated  expedition  of  Mungo  Park  in  this  very  region, 
when  his  comrades  perished  one  by  one.  Out  of 
thirty -nine  who  accompanied  that  explorer  from 
Gambia,  five  alone  returned  with  him  to  Bammakoo. 

The  morning  of  May  1st  was  entirely  occupied  in 
"  drying  the  camp "  —  tents,  blankets,  saddles,  and 
raiment — a  mighty  fire  having  been  built  for  this 
purpose.  Suddenly,  while  engaged  in  this  business, 
the  general  attention  was  attracted  by  a  loud  noise 
and  movement  in  that  part  of  the  camp  nearest  the 
river.  Everybody — spahis,  tirailleurs,  muleteers,  and 
ass-drivers — rushed  to  the  bank,  brandishing  all  kinds 
of  weapons, — guns,  swords,  lances,  sticks ;  Yoro  the 


214  CAPTAIN  Q ALLIEN VS  EXPEDITION. 

chef  among  the  rest,  interrupted  while  in  the  pre- 
paration of  dinner,  flourishing  his  cook's  knife.  Old 
Sambo  declared  that  the  cause  of  the  commotion  was 
a  tiger,  which,  surprised  by  a  spahi  who  had  been 
taking  his  horse  to  drink,  had  plunged  into  the  river. 

Captain  Gallieni  and  the  other  leaders  seized  their 
rifles,  and  were  immediately  in  the  thick  of  the  crowd. 
N'Gor  Faye,  the  hunter  of  Kobaboulinda,  was  already 
mid-way  in  the  stream  in  pursuit  of  the  creature 
which  had  raised  such  a  commotion.  The  throng'  on 
the  bank  shouted  and  gesticulated,  making  an  uproar 
of  which  it  was  impossible  to  discover  the  real  cause. 
For  a  long  time  the  object  of  the  chase  remained 
beneath  the  water  in  a  manner  that  made  it  difficult 
to  believe  the  creature  either  a  tiger  or  a  panther. 
At  length  there  appeared  above  the  surface  the  head 
of  a  large  otter,  which  soon  fell  the  prey  of  N'Gor 
Faye.  When  Sambo  was  rallied  about  his  tiger,  he 
was  equal  to  the  occasion,  replying,  "  Well,  the  otter 
is  the  water-tiger !" 

The  next  most  important  halt  made  by  the  expedi- 
tion was  at  Koundou,  the  principal  village  of  Foula- 
dougou,  containing  some  seven  or  eight  hundred 
inhabitants.  Lieutenant  Valliere,  in  advance  of  the 
main  body  of  the  caravan,  had  prepared  the  way  for 
the  reception  of  the  expedition  at  Koundou.  He  had 
been  met  by  the  chief  and  his  warriors  in  a  hilarious 
and   excited   condition   from   over -draughts   of    dolo. 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  215 

But  on  the  following  day,  when  the  effects  of  the 
revel  had  disappeared,  the  king  and  notables  of 
Koundou  had  listened  favourably  to  Lieutenant  Val- 
liere's  overtures,  accompanied  as  they  were  by  a  pres- 
ent of  cloths.  Thus  when  Captain  Gallieni  arrived 
with  the  main  body  he  was  hospitably  welcomed  by 
the  Koundou  chieftain. 

The  river  Baoule"  divides  the  Malinke's  from  the 
Bambarras,  the  Fouladougou  country  from  the  Be'le- 
dougou.  The  latter  is  a  fine  country,  well  watered  by 
the  Baoule"  and  its  affluents,  and  characterized  by  the 
luxuriance  of  its  vegetation.  Some  two  hundred  and 
fifty  villages,  hidden  in  dells  and  hollows,  and  sur- 
rounded with  strong  walls,  occupy  the  cleared  spaces  in 
the  forest.  The  inhabitants  of  this  vast  territory  are 
at  constant  feud  among  themselves  or  with  their 
neighbours,  and  live  almost  entirely  by  pillage. 

The  Fouladougou  natives  showed  a  hostile  front  to 
the  expedition.  At  Guinina,  when  Captain  Gallieni 
sought  an  interview  with  the  chief,  a  handsome  old 
man  of  stalwart  carriage,  the  latter  received  the  white 
leader  coldly,  and  told  him  plainly  that  he  neither 
trusted  him  nor  understood  his  intentions. 

"  For  whom,"  said  he,  "  are  all  these  presents  that 
you  bring  with  you? " 

The  unfriendliness  of  the  negro  king  was  evident, 
and  Captain  Gallieni  felt  sure  that  he  would  lose  no 
favourable  opportunity  of  showing  it.      Under  these 


216  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

circumstances  the  leader  took  all  expedient  precautions 
against  possible  surprise.  The  camp  was  strengthened 
and  protected  as  far  as  it  could  be  by  piling  up  the 
baggage  so  as  to  form  a  sort  of  rampart.  The  spahis 
and  muleteers  were  stationed  on  guard  on  one  side  of 
the  encampment,  the  tirailleurs  on  the  other,  while  the 
animals  were  placed  in  the  middle,  where  also  the 
tent  of  the  leaders  was  pitched.  At  the  angles  of  the 
square  thus  formed  were  placed  the  guns  (mounted 
on  carriages  constructed  from  the  trunks  of  trees), 
directed  upon  the  gates  of  the  village,  and  on  the 
forest  surrounding  the  open  space  where  the  camp 
was  pitched. 

In  the  evening  the  guard  of  spahis  and  tirailleurs 
was  doubled,  and  from  time  to  time  Captain  Gallieni 
caused  coloured  lights  and  rockets  to  be  discharged, 
with  the  object  of  striking  awe  into  the  hearts  of  the 
natives.  Later  in  the  night,  when  all  was  silent  about 
the  camp,  a  patrol  of  the  village  walls  was  made,  when 
a  loud  noise  as  of  men  in  eager  discussion  was  heard 
within.  Two  of  Captain  Gallieni's  native  followers 
who  understood  the  Bambarra  language  announced 
that  the  debate  referred  to  an  attack  upon  the  white 
men,  who  "  had  come  into  the  Be'le'dougou  country  to 
deceive  the  people,  and  to  aid  the  Toucouleurs  in  sub- 
jugating them." 

On  the  following  morning,  May  9th,  Captain  Gal- 
lieni sent  to  ask  the  Guinina  chief  for  guides  for  the 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  217 

journey,  when  the  old  king,  who  had  shown  himself  so 
cold  on  the  previous  day,  not  only  proposed  to  send 
guides  but  also  men  to  help  in  carrying  the  baggage. 
Captain  Gallieni,  however,  was  not  duped  by  this 
excess  of  complaisance.  Next  day,  the  old  man, 
impressed  no  doubt  by  seeing  the  guns  directed 
upon  the  walls  of  his  village,  did  actually  provide  five 
guides  chosen  from  his  own  household,  in  return  for 
which  service  he  was  to  receive  a  satisfactory  present 
— four  pieces  of  yellow  cloth,  six  swords,  a  keg  of 
rum,  etc.  Captain  Gallieni  thought  it  expedient  to 
accept  these  conditions.  The  guides  were  received  ; 
and  by  mid-day  everything  was  ready  for  the  march. 

In  the  evening  of  the  same  day  the  caravan  reached 
Dio.  Here  the  same  defensive  precautions  were 
taken  as  at  Guinina.  When  the  leader  sought 
audience  of  the  chief  he  found  his  path  barred  by  a 
group  of  natives,  who  informed  him  that  the  king 
was  too  old  to  leave  his  house,  and  that  he  had 
charged  them  to  receive  the  white  man  and  treat  him 
with  hospitality. 

The  village  itself  seemed  to  contain  very  few  in- 
habitants, for  within  the  walls  almost  total  silence 
reigned.  These  ambassadors  of  the  king,  however, 
seemed  disposed  to  be  friendly,  assuring  the  strangers 
that  they  had  nothing  to  fear.  They  promised  guides 
for  the  morrow,  and  one  of  the  king's  brothers  offered 
himself  to  accompany  the  expedition  as  far  as  the  Niger. 


218  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

The  situation  appeared  to  be  becoming  less  "strained," 
in  diplomatic  phrase ;  but  at  night,  the  patrol  which 
Captain  Gallieni  had  despatched  to  reconnoitre  the 
walls  brought  back  word  to  the  camp  that  the  village, 
which  had  appeared  to  be  empty  of  inhabitants,  was, 
in  reality,  full  of  warriors,  who  were  now  planning  an 
attack  upon  the  expedition.  The  crisis  was  a  suf- 
ficiently grave  one,  for  every  path  back  to  the 
Senegal  was  closed  to  the  explorers,  and  for  a  little  it 
seemed  as  if  nothing  remained  but  to  sell  their  lives 
dearly. 

Early  on  the  morning  of  the  11th  Captain  Gallieni 
despatched  a  handsome  present  to  the  chief  of  Dio, 
and  received  in  turn  six  large  bags  of  millet,  together 
with  the  promise  of  two  good  guides.  Here  the  five 
youths  of  Guinina,  who  were  to  accompany  the  cara- 
van as  far  as  the  Niger,  informed  Captain  Gallieni 
that  they  were  fatigued  and  wished  to  return  home. 

Shortly  after  mid-day  the  caravan  was  in  motion, 
following  a  straight  path  for  the  Baoule.  A  death- 
like silence  reigned  around.  The  village,  the  forest, 
the  river,  all  seemed  deserted.  There  was  something 
mysterious  and  ominous  in  the  intense  stillness. 

"You'll  see,  captain," said  Barka,  the  old  Senegalee, — 
"  you'll  see,  something's  going  to  happen." 

The  stream  was  crossed  without  difficulty,  and  the 
horsemen  were  penetrating  the  forest,  every  eye  on 
the  watch,  the  muskets  slung  across  the  saddle,  the 


CAPTAIN  G ALLIEN VS  EXPEDITION.  221 

revolvers  ready  to  the  hand.  Some  minutes  passed. 
The  guide,  under  the  pretext  of  avoiding  a  difficult 
path  for  the  animals,  led  the  way  to  the  right,  through 
a  narrow  ravine  bounded  by  lofty  and  steep  slopes. 
Captain  Gallieni  felt  sure  that  they  had  left  the  right 
path,  and  immediately  arrested  the  guide,  who,  with 
feigned  amazement,  threw  himself  at  the  leader's  feet, 
and  rent  the  air  with  his  protestations.  Barka 
silenced  the  fellow's  howling  at  the  sword  point. 

At  that  moment  a  discharge  of  musketry  was  heard 
in  the  direction  of  the  river,  and  before  the  echoes  had 
ceased  in  the  forest,  a  horde  of  yelling  savages  were 
pouring  from  all  sides  upon  the  caravan. 

For  a  moment  all  was  confusion,  for  the  attack  was 
so  sudden  and  at  such  close  quarters  that  Gallieni's 
men  were  unable  to  use  their  arms.  Presently,  how- 
ever, the  spahis  and  tirailleurs  rallied  in  an  open 
space  of  ground,  and  pouring  upon  their  assailants  a 
deadly  fire  very  soon  cleared  a  circle  around  them. 
After  hard  fighting,  some  ruined  battlements  which 
had  once  formed  part  of  the  wall  of  Dio  were  gained, 
and  here  good  vantage-ground  was  found  from  which 
to  conduct  the  defence.  The  caravan  was  not  a 
moment  too  soon  in  escaping  from  the  deadly  cul-de- 
sac  into  which  it  had  fallen.  The  enemy  continued 
the  attack  with  shot  and  spear,  but  the  fire  was 
returned  with  equal  energy.  In  the  first  confusion  of 
the  surprise,  the  caravan  had  got  separated  into  two 


222  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

parts,  and  the  rear,  consisting  chiefly  of  the  beasts  of 
burden  and  their  conductors,  was  still  close  to  the 
river,  under  the  command  of  Dr.  Tautain. 

The  savages  fought  fiercely  in  their  native  fashion, 
while  Captain  Gallieni's  men,  enraged  at  the  treachery 
of  the  Beleris,  maintained  an  indomitable  front,  obeying 
the  leader's  orders  with  perfect  coolness,  and  exclaim- 
ing that  they  would  fight  to  the  last  extremity.  They 
threw  themselves  in  front  of  the  leader's  horse  and 
covered  him  with  their  own  bodies !  Again  and  again 
Barka,  leading  the  spahis,  returned  from  the  combat 
with  his  sabre  red  with  blood,  only  to  recover  breath 
enough  to  renew  his  impetuous  onslaught.  Captain 
Gallieni  records  that  his  natives  showed  a  courage,  oil 
this  occasion  of  terrible  odds,  worthy  of  European 
veterans. 

By-and-by,  the  havoc  which  followed  the  fire  of 
Captain  Gallieni's  men,  the  courage  of  the  tirailleurs 
and  spahis,  the  invulnerability  which  seemed  to 
shield  the  white  men — all  this  cooled  the  ardour  of 
the  Beleris,  and  the  battle  had  not  lasted  more  than 
half  an  hour,  when  Captain  Gallieni  succeeded  in 
cutting  a  path  through  the  enemy  and  in  rejoining 
the  rear  part  of  the  caravan.  As  they  did  so, 
they  beheld  the  interpreter  Alassane  carrying  Dr. 
Tautain  on  the  croup  of  his  saddle,  followed  by  the 
survivors  of  the  rear-guard.  The  doctor  had  been 
forced  to  dismount  from  his  horse  early  in  the  fray, 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI 'S  EXPEDITION.  223 

the  animal  having  become  restive  and  unmanageable, 
and  had  headed  his  men  on  foot  until  the  over- 
whelming numbers  of  the  enemy  had  compelled  him 
and  his  little  band  to  retreat. 

As  rapidly  as  possible  the  leaders  now  began  to 
reorganize  the  caravan.  The  most  expedient  course 
seemed  to  be  to  make  for  the  Niger,  which  Captain 
Gallieni  hoped  by  forced  marching  to  reach  by  the 
next  morning. 

Everything  was  at  last  ready  for  the  retreat.  The 
dead  and  wounded,  to  the  number  of  forty  in  all,  were 
placed  on  the  horses  and  mules.  The  spahis  led  the 
caravan  under  the  guidance  of  Barka,  who  received 
orders  to  strike  directly  for  the  east,  and  to  hold  on 
his  way  through  all  opposing  difficulties.  In  silence 
and  sadness  the  march  towards  the  Niger  began, 
through  an  unknown  country,  beset  with  enemies  on 
every  side. 

The  caravan  quitted  the  basin  of  the  Senegal  only 
to  enter  that  of  the  Niger.  As  the  travellers  ap- 
proached the  neighbourhood  of  the  great  river,  a 
walled  village  was  sighted,  situated  at  the  foot  of  a 
range  of  hills,  and  a  group  of  natives,  watching  their 
herds  and  surprised  at  the  approach  of  the  caravan. 

At  the  same  time  it  was  announced  to  Captain 
Gallieni  that  the  Beleris  were  close  behind,  and  were 
gathering  on  the  surrounding  heights. 

What  was  to  be  done  ?    It  seemed  better  to  approach 


224  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

the  people  of  this  new  village,  which  might  possibly 
belong  to  the  Bammakou  country,  rather  than  to  risk 
a  second  conflict  with  the  Bambarras.  Gallieni 
accordingly  drew  near  the  group  of  natives,  which 
was  rapidly  increasing  in  numbers.  They  sat  silent 
and  motionless  now,  not  disturbed  by  the  sight  of  a 
white  man  approaching  them  alone  and  unarmed. 
Through  Alassane  the  interpreter,  Captain  Gallieni 
recounted  the  events  of  the  previous  day — the  treason 
of  the  Bambarras  towards  a  man  who  was  the  friend 
of  Bammakou,  and  who  had  come  to  that  village  as  a 
peace-maker,  under  the  conduct  of  the  son  of  one  of 
the  greatest  chiefs  of  that  country. 

The  natives  listened  attentively,  and  at  the  close  of 
Gallieni's  speech  assured  him  that  he  need  fear 
nothing  further  at  the  hands  of  the  Beleris.  Then 
one  brought  water  and  another  calabashes  of  native 
wine,  and  the  white  man  was  reassured. 

On  the  following  day  the  new  allies  provided 
guides,  the  march  was  resumed,  and  at  mid-day  the 
Niger  was  beheld  afar,  rolling  through  the  plain  in 
an  easterly  direction.  But  how  different  was  the 
arrival  of  the  expedition  at  the  great  river  from  what 
had  been  hoped  for !  The  caravan  was,  in  truth,  in  a 
pitiable  plight,  deprived  of  almost  all  resources  and 
ignorant  of  what  might  happen'bn  the  morrow. 

A  little  later,  Captain  Gallieni  was  met  by  Albdar- 
amane,  who  brought  news  of  Lieutenants  Valliere  and 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  225 

Pietri.  It  must  here  be  explained  that  Valliere  had 
separated  from  Gallieni  at  Kita,  and  had  by  this  time 
arrived  at  Bammakou,  where  a  treaty  had  been  con- 
eluded  which  placed  that  village  under  the  protec- 
torate of  the  French. 

At  one  o'clock  of  the  same  day  Captain  Gallieni 
himself  reached  Bammakou,  where  he  was  met  by 
Pietri  and  Valliere,  who  soon  placed  him  in  possession 
of  all  that  had  happened  since  they  parted.  They 
had  been  well  received  at  Be'le'dougou  and  at  Dio, 
while  at  Bammakou  their  welcome  had  been  of  the 
most  sympathetic  kind. 

The  camp  was  pitched  before  Bammakou,  an  im- 
portant station,  whose  influence  extends  throughout 
all  the  region  of  the  Upper  Niger,  from  Timbuctoo  as 
far  as  Tangrela  and  Sierra  Leone.  Yet  it  is  no  more 
than  a  village,  occupying  an  isolated  position  in  a 
little  corner  of  Be'le'dougou,  with  a  population  of  not 
more  than  eight  hundred. 

Since  the  night  of  the  8th  at  Guinina  no  individual 
in  the  camp  had  closed  an  eye ;  the  wounded  were  in 
a  most  pitiable  condition,  some  of  the  men  suffering 
from  four  or  five  wounds — rest  was  indispensable  for 
all.  Unfortunately,  the  reception  accorded  to  Captain 
Gallieni  at  Bammakou,  unlike  that  of  Valliere  and 
Pietri,  was  cold  in  the  extreme.  The  story  of  the 
pillage  of  the  expedition  at  the  hands  of  the  Beleris 
had  now  reached  Bammakou,  and  the  people  feared  to 

(94)  15 


226  CAPTAIN  OALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

compromise  themselves  with  the  Beleris.  To  the  salu- 
tation which  Captain  Gallieni  sent  to  the  chief  the 
latter  replied :  "  A  great  misfortune  has  befallen  you, 
for  which  I  can  provide  no  remedy.  All  I  can  do  is 
to  suffer  you  to  depart  with  your  possessions." 

We  must  here  interrupt  for  a  little  the  story  of  the 
main  expedition,  under  the  leadership  of  Captain 
Gallieni,  to  give  the  narrative  of  Lieutenant  Valliere, 
who  separated  from  Captain  Gallieni  at  Kita  for  the 
purpose  of  exploring  the  valley  of  the  Bakhoy. 
This  journey  was  made  through  a  region  hitherto 
unvisited  by  any  European. 

The  expedition  had  rested  ten  days  at  Kita,  and 
then,  while  the  main  body  of  the  caravan  directed  its 
march  towards  the  east  by  way  of  Bangassi,  a  small 
detachment  under  the  command  of  Lieutenant  Valliere 
took  the  road  to  Mourgoula. 

After  a  pretty  long  stage  the  village  of  Goubanko 
was  reached,  at  the  gates  of  which  Lieutenant  Valliere 
was  met  by  a  party  of  men  who  seemed  about  to  oppose 
the  entrance  of  himself  and  his  followers.  On  request- 
ing to  be  conducted  to  the  chief,  Lieutenant  Valliere  was 
presented  to  a  number  of  old  men  seated  on  the  ground. 
All  were  blind,  and  so  old  as  to  have  lost  the  power  of 
articulate  speech  !  To  a  younger  man  Valliere  explained 
that  his  mission  was  entirely  one  of  peace.  The  young 
man  thanked  the  white  man  simply,  and  the  old  chiefs 
mumbled  some  confused  words  of  gratitude. 


CAPTAIN  OALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  227 

Goubanko  is  a  strongly  fortified  village,  and  its  in- 
habitants are  an  energetic  people.  Lieutenant 
Valliere  was  struck  with  the  fine  features  of  the 
notables  of  the  place,  the  paleness  of  their  complexion, 
and  the  reserved  dignity  of  their  manners.  In  the 
evening  Captain  Gallieni  and  four  spahis  entered  the 
camp,  and  the  two  white  leaders  were  a  little  later 
engaged  in  a  palaver  with  the  people  of  the  village, 
in  which  the  affairs  of  Kita  were  fully  discussed. 
The  scene  was  a  curious  one.  The  night  had  fallen ; 
no  light,  save  that  of  the  stars  and  what  came  from 
two  forges  hard  by,  lit  up  the  assembly;  and  the 
swarthy  forms  and  faces  of  the  natives  gleamed  fan- 
tastically in  the  half-light. 

The  next  day  Lieutenant  Valliere  again  set  out. 
Khoumo  the  guide  was  not  to  be  found,  and  another 
had  to  be  obtained  in  his  place.  While  the  little 
troop  was  proceeding  quietly  through  a  forest,  a  spahi 
galloped  up  to  the  leader  and  handed  him  a  letter,  the 
perusal  of  which  explained  the  enigmatic  conduct  of 
Master  Khoumo.  At  Kita  the  guide  had  carried  off 
two  women,  whom  he  had  hidden  at  Goubanko,  which 
village  he  had  just  quitted.  This  escapade  had  caused 
Captain  Gallieni  considerable  annoyance,  and  he  had 
sent  word  to  Lieutenant  Valliere  to  send  back  the 
women. 

Khoumo's  arrival  in  camp  was  sufficiently  ludicrous. 
He  was  riding  at  a  trot,  one  of  the  women  before 


228  CAPTAIN  OALLIENVS  EXPEDITION. 

him,  the  other  behind.  His  ugly  face  peered 
comically  from  under  a  big  straw  hat,  between  the 
faces  of  his  fair  companions.  The  panting  and 
smoking  steed  looked  as  if  protesting  against  his 
unusual  burden,  and  not  quite  able  to  make  out  the 
six  legs  dangling  across  his  back. 

Khoumo  dismounted  amid  the  laughter  of  his 
fellows,  followed  by  the  two  dusky  Helens,  silent 
with  astonishment  at  all  that  was  happening.  On 
Khoumo  being  ordered  to  return  the  two  stolen 
women  at  once,  he  answered  that  he  had  not  stolen 
them ;  that  he  loved  Aisse"  to  distraction,  and  that  the 
other  loved  him  as  violently,  and  would  follow  him  in 
spite  of  everything  !  In  the  face  of  the  fact  that  the 
gallant  was  of  conspicuous  ugliness,  this  statement  of 
the  case  was  extremely  ludicrous.  Moreover,  certain 
parcels  of  calico  and  guinea-cloth  which  the  ladies 
were  carrying  tended  to  put  a  different  complexion 
upon  the  story. 

Lieutenant  Valliere  ordered  the  spahi  to  take  the 
two  women,  while  Khoumo  rent  the  air  with  his 
lamentations,  shrieking,  "  Aissd !  Aisse*  ! "  Five 
minutes  later,  the  party  having  resumed  the  march, 
Valliere  heard  the  heart-broken  lover  explaining  in  a 
light  tone  to  his  comrades  that  the  captain  had  acted 
quite  right,  and  that  he  (Khoumo)  had  got  his  deserts. 

Some  hours  later,  when  the  party  were  resting  in 
the  heat  of  the  day  beneath  a  leafy  screen  of  trees, 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  229 

Lieutenant  Valliere  discovered  that  Khoumo  had  again 
vanished.  At  mid-day  he  reappeared  covered  with 
dust  and  perspiration.  He  had  followed  the  spahi 
and  Aisse',  and  suborned  the  former  to  give  up  his 
lady-love.  Valliere  peremptorily  ordered  Khoumo  to 
say  where  he  had  hidden  Aisse'  a  second  time.  The 
rascal  stammered  and  hesitated,  and  then  called 
"  Aisse' !  "  who  presently  issued  from  her  hiding-place, 
a  few  yards  from  the  camp.  The  spahi  once  more  took 
possession  of  the  woman ;  while  Khoumo,  giving  way 
to  a  fit  of  passion,  refused  to  accompany  the  party 
any  longer,  caught  up  a  gun,  and  threatened  to  shoot 
any  one  who  approached  him.  He  was  seized  and 
disarmed,  and  it  was  made  plain  to  him  that  if  he 
tried  to  escape  he  would  be  at  once  shot. 

In  the  afternoon  Lieutenant  Valliere  quitted 
Bammakou,  and  directed  his  course  for  the  lagoon  of 
Delaba,  but  soon  found  his  march  obstructed  by  a 
succession  of  pools  forming  a  channel  now  almost  dry. 
The  guide  informed  him  that  they  had  reached 
Delaba,  and  the  leader  decided  to  camp  here.  To- 
wards nightfall  a  violent  wind  arose,  the  lightning 
flashed,  and  a  thunder-clap  split  a  lemon-tree  close  to 
the  camp.  The  party  were  wholly  without  shelter, 
and  were  presently  exposed  to  the  full  fury  of  a 
tornado  of  unusual  violence.  The  dust  enveloped 
them  in  a  whirlwind,  while  their  faces  and  hands  were 
literally  whipped  by  the  pebbles  which  the  fury  of  the 


230  CAPTAIN  GALLIENVS  EXPEDITION. 

storm  raised.  The  men  durst  open  neither  eyes  nor 
mouth  for  fear  of  being  blinded  or  stifled,  and  all 
thought  with  dread  of  the  long  night  before  them. 
The  rain  had  already  begun,  and  a  night  of  exposure 
to  tropical  rain  often  means  a  fever  next  day. 

Fortunately,  the  tornado  was  as  short-lived  as  it  was 
furious ;  the  rain  came  to  nothing.  The  storm  was  of 
a  sort  characteristic  of  these  latitudes  towards  the 
approach  of  the  winter  season. 

On  the  same  evening  Lieutenant  Valliere  received 
a  letter  from  Captain  Gallieni  by  the  hands  of  a  native 
porter,  and  set  out  next  morning,  hoping  to  reach 
Mourgoula  the  same  day.  The  march  led  first  through 
a  beautiful  forest  country,  and  afterwards  across  great 
expanses  covered  with  small  stones,  and  presenting  the 
curious  appearance  of  having  been  rained  upon  by  a 
thick  shower  of  pebbles. 

At  two  o'clock  Sitakoto  was  reached,  and  a  party 
of  negroes  met  with — caravans  from  the  Upper  Niger, 
as  usual,  with  a  train  of  male  and  female  slaves ;  a 
miserable  sight,  from  which  the  white  leader  was  glad 
to  turn  away  his  eyes. 

The  party  were  extremely  wearied  with  a  long  day's 
march,  and  Valliere's  temples  throbbed  so  violently 
that  for  a  little  he  feared  he  had  received  a  sun- 
stroke. By  keeping  his  head  for  a  little  time  in  a 
bucket  of  cold  water,  however,  the  pain  was  alle- 
viated. 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  233 

The  chief  of  Sitakoto  arrived  presently,  and  declared 
himself  honoured  by  a  visit  from  the  white  man ;  and 
regretted  that,  owing  to  his  poverty,  he  could  not  give 
him  a  fitting  reception.  All  Lieutenant  Valliere  said 
he  wished  was  provisions  for  his  party,  for  which  he 
would  amply  pay.  Millet  proved  very  scarce,  and 
was  only  procurable  at  double  the  usual  price. 

Late  in  the  afternoon  Mourgoula  was  reached.  A 
tall  Toucouleur,  of  forbidding  aspect,  requested  Lieu- 
tenant Valliere  to  follow  him.  The  white  man  was  then 
informed  that  Almamy  could  not  receive  him  at  pres- 
ent, and  that  he  was  at  liberty  to  camp  where  he  chose. 

Next  morning  Almamy  still  refused  to  see  the 
white  leader.  Valliere  told  the  chief  that  it  was  the 
governor  of  St.  Louis's  business,  and  that  he  could 
only  set  out  again  with  regret  that  he  had  not  seen 
Almamy.  This  had  the  desired  effect :  the  chief 
commanded  the  white  man's  presence. 

Five  or  six  grave  personages  were  squatted  round 
the  king,  who  occupied  a  clean  hut,  and  sat  on  a 
carpet  of  sheep-skins.  An  empty  bench  was  placed 
for  Lieutenant  Valliere  to  sit  on,  and  a  sabre  was 
laid  at  his  feet.  Almamy  wore  a  mask  which  covered 
all  his  face  except  the  eyes,  and  his  head  was  adorned 
with  a  large  turban.  Valliere  saluted  him,  explained 
the  object  of  the  mission,  and  gave  him  a  letter  from 
the  governor  of  Senegal.  Almamy  demanded  why 
Kita  and  Goubanko  had  been  reconciled  without  his 


234  t  •M'TMN  <:.\  u.ikni  's  i:\  I'i:i>iti<>.\. 

being  consulted.  Was  lie  not,  the  terril orial  chief  of 
the  country  '. 

This  brusque  reception  surprised  Valliere  a  good 
deal ;  but  ho  tried  to  show  Almamy  that  Captain 
Gallicni  liad  acted  with  all  honourable  intentions  in 
arbitrating  between  the  two  villages.  Alinainy  now 
read  the  letter,  and  his  I'aee  cleared  somewhat. 

"  The  governor  of  St.  Louis  speaks  well.  Thou  art 
going  to  Amadou.  I.e.  welcome.  I  am  only  the  eye 
of  my  master." 

The  eilief  then  offered  a  guide;  and  on  Lieutenant 
Valliere    requesting   that   a  courier  should    be    sent 

forward  with  a  letter  of  explanation,  consented. 
Iwnally,  the  white  leader  quitted  Almamy  on  the  hest 
of  terms,  having  presented  him  with  a  gun  and  a 
handsome  mantle,  while  his  wives  received  bottles  of 
scent,  jeweli-y,  etc. 

In  the  evening  Almamy  returned  his  guest's  visit. 

He  Was  now  unmasked,  and  revealed  a  face  of  amiable 
aspect,  with  soft  eyes.  Was  this  the  ferocious  tyrant 
of  report'  Almamy  had  surely  the  gift  of  masking 
In  countenance  when  he  chose  in  more  senses  than 
one.  The  chief  thanked  the  white  man  for  his  pre 
ent,  as  did  his  daughter  on  bended  knees. 

When     Lieutenant    Valliere    had    quitted    the   village, 

he  learned  that  Almamy  had  secretly  hesitated  about 
allowing  him  to  continue  his  journey  :  thus  skilful 
are  the  Toueouleurs  in  the  ait  of  dissimulation. 


CAPTAIN  OALLIENI'8  EXPEDITION.  888 

After  a  difficult  march  the  travellers  reached  Kou- 
kouroni.  Lieutenant  Valliere  found  the  inhabitants 
a  poor  and  miserable  people,  who  had  suffered  severely 
at  the  hands  of  the  Toucouleurs.  They  gathered 
about  the  white  strangers  in  attitudes  of  the  utmost 
humility,  and  when  a  gun  was  discharged  thought  it 
witchcraft.  The  camp  was  visited  by  a  little  girl  of 
such  conspicuous  beauty  that  Lieutenant  Valliere 
transmitted  her  graceful  form  and  charming  face  to 
the  pages  of  his  sketch-book.  She  had  very  beauti- 
ful, soft,  and  dreamy  eyes,  shining  hair  crowned  with 
a  coronet  of  glass  beads,  while  her  figure  was  the 
personification  of  natural  grace.  The  poor  people 
were  dumb  with  astonishment  at  the  approximate 
likeness  which  Valliere  succeeded  in  catching  of  the 
little  Koukouroni  beauty. 

On  the  2nd  of  May  the  party  reached  Niagakoura, 
a  miserable  village  with  some  hundred  inhabitants, 
situated  in  the  middle  of  a  desert.  After  a  long  and 
weary  march  through  a  hot  and  stony  country,  the 
travellers  at  length  camped  beside  a  beautiful  little 
river,  thrice  welcome  after  the  excessive  heat  of  the 
journey.  A  more  favourable  camping-ground  could 
not  be  desired  than  under  the  cool  shadow  of  the 
trees  that  bordered  the  stream.  A  bath  refreshed  the 
weary  travellers,  and  a  dish  of  perch  from  the  river 
made  a  welcome  change  for  supper. 

The  region  through  which  Lieutenant  Valliere  was 


236  CAPTAIN  6 ALLIEN I'S  EXPEDITION. 

now  travelling  receives  the  general  name  of  Birgo — 
a  well-watered  and  fertile  country,  containing  but  a 
scanty  population.  The  people  wear  little  clothing — 
the  women  wearing  a  girdle  only,  and  the  children 
going  entirely  naked.  The  agricultural  products  of 
the  country  are  chiefly  maize  and  millet  and  a  little 
cotton.  No  oxen  are  seen  anywhere,  and  only  a  very 
few  sheep  and  goats.  Butter-trees  abound ;  the  people 
gathering  only  enough  of  the  fruit  to  serve  their  im- 
mediate wants.  The  people  have  abandoned  hunting. 
Although  one  of  the  chief  commercial  roads  of  West 
Soudan  crosses  the  country,  it  leads  to  no  trade  with 
these  people,  who  are  too  poor  to  buy  cloth,  and  are 
limited  to  the  exchange  of  glass  beads  and  such  like 
for  provisions  with  the  passing  caravans.  The  natives 
are  among  the  best  favoured  physically  of  the  Soudan 
tribes,  and  the  country  possesses  many  natural  advan- 
tages. Their  miserable  condition  is  due  to  the  baneful 
rule  of  the  Toucouleurs.  When  this  is  replaced  by  a 
milder  and  more  beneficent  government,  prosperity 
and  happiness  may  yet  return  to  Birgo. 

Lieutenant  Valliere  quitted  with  regret  the  beauti- 
ful camp,  and,  resuming  the  march,  reached  the  walled 
village  of  Niagassola,  a  considerable,  place,  with  a 
population  of  one  thousand.  Valliere  presented  him- 
self to  the  king,  and  explained  as  usual  the  object  of 
the  mission.  The  chief,  an  old  man  of  tall  and  stal- 
wart aspect,  replied  that  the  stranger  was  welcome, 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  237 

and  that  his  ancestors  had  ever  treated  the  white  man 
with  hospitality. 

Three  days'  march  to  the  south  of  Niagassola  lies 
Boure,  a  little  republic  governed  by  the  heads  of  four 
families.  An  industrious  people,  little  given  to  war, 
occupy  the  country  in  security  and  peace.  Lieuten- 
ant Valliere  visited  Boure,  and  was  received  by  the 
reigning  prince  with  much  circumstance  and  ceremony, 
which,  intended  to  be  impressive,  was  not  a  little 
comical.  After  a  good  deal  of  preliminary  state 
etiquette,  the  white  leader  was  permitted  to  shake 
hands  with  the  aged  chief,  whom  he  subsequently 
presented  with  a  beautiful  rifle. 

On  the  5  th  of  May  the  party  reached  Koumakhana, 
situated  in  an  important  gold  country,  whose  mines 
constitute  the  entire  wealth  of  the  people.  The 
natives  work  the  mines  wholly  with  the  pick.  When 
the  workmen  have  reached  a  certain  depth  they  draw 
up  the  siftings  in  calabashes  attached  to  cords ;  and  in 
order  to  facilitate  their  descent  into  the  mines,  they 
cut  holes  in  the  walls  for  their  hands  and  feet. 

The  neighbouring  pools  supply  the  facilities  for 
washing  the  gold.  The  more  delicate  operation  of 
washing  the  mineral  is  intrusted  to  the  women.  The 
auriferous  earth,  having  been  extracted  from  the 
mine,  is  placed  in  calabashes  filled  with  clear  water. 
The  workers  keep  the  calabashes  moving  in  a  circle, 
and  gradually  the  quartz,  separating  itself  from  the 


238  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

gravel,  falls  to  the  bottom  of  the  vessel.  Lieutenant 
Valliere  was  anxious  to  learn  how  much  gold  was 
thus  purified  and  made  into  ingots,  but  the  Koumak- 
hana  miners  refused  to  give  him  any  idea. 

Continuing  his  journey,  Valliere  and  his  comrades 
arrived  at  a  broad  plateau  bounded  by  the  mountains 
of  Manding,  stretching  east  and  by  south  ;  and  shortly 
after  the  important  village  of  Narena,  with  its  two 
large  gates,  was  reached. 

Report  credited  the  people  of  Narena  with  being 
little  given  to  hospitality,  and  Lieutenant  Valliere  was 
able  to  add  his  testimony  to  the  same  effect.  He  was, 
in  truth,  but  brusquely  received  by  the  chief,  and 
deemed  it  expedient  to  waste  as  little  time  as  possible 
in  his  territory. 

Shortly  after  quitting  Narena,  the  party  gained  the 
banks  of  the  beautiful  river  Amarakoba,  whose 
golden  waters,  flowing  over  their  rocky  bed,  wander 
on  to  join  the  main  river.  The  travellers  were  here 
followed  by  a  caravan  of  slaves,  composed  almost 
entirely  of  children,  who,  entirely  ignorant  of  the  fate 
awaiting  them,  played  and  gambolled  about — bathing 
in  the  river,  chasing  the  fish  and  insects,  and  fill- 
ing the  air  with  their  shouts  and  laughter.  Lieuten- 
ant Valliere  gathered  from  the  leader  of  the  caravan 
many  particulars  regarding  his  hateful  trade.  These 
files  of  slaves,  gathered  from  all  parts  of  Soudan, 
were  to  feed  the  markets  of  the  Upper  Niger,  where 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  239 

they  were  sold  to  the  Moors  of  Sahara.  The  profits 
accruing  from  the  trade  are  considerable. 

On  the  day  following  the  meeting  with  the  slave- 
caravan,  the  explorers  arrived  at  Mana-Oule',  a  very 
singular  natural  conformation,  composed  of  a  mountain 
presenting  a  succession  of  vertical  terraced  walls, 
bastioned,  as  it  were,  by  all  sorts  of  rocky  towers, 
which  give  it  the  appearance  of  a  gigantic  piece  of 
mason-work.  A  little  further  on  Nienkema  was 
reached,  built  at  the  foot  of  a  picturesque  mass  of 
rocks ;  while  a  short  distance  off  rose  two  lofty 
obelisks,  formed  of  graystone.  These  singular  pin- 
nacles inclined  forward  at  so  sharp  an  angle  that  they 
looked  as  if  threatening  at  every  moment  to  over- 
whelm the  unlucky  village  at  their  base.  The  atten- 
tion of  Lieutenant  Valliere  was  arrested  by  many 
curiously-shaped  rocks  in  this  neighbourhood ;  some 
like  vast  colonnades,  others  like  gates  and  porches,  all 
of  most  odd  and  unexpected  appearance. 

The  village  of  Sibi  was  next  sighted,  and  the 
leader  was  pushing  on  with  some  impatience  to  reach 
it,  for  his  men  were  fatigued  with  the  march  and 
the  heat,  when  he  was  arrested  by  symptoms  of  ex- 
treme fear  on  the  part  of  the  guide,  who  was  eagerly 
listening  in  the  direction  of  the  village,  while  at  the 
same  time  urging  silence  in  the  camp.  What  was  up 
now  ?  thought  the  leader. 

Lieutenant    Valliere    now    listened    in    turn,    and 


240  CA  PTAIN  GA  LLIENI  '5  EXPEDITION. 

thought  he  heard  cries  in  the  distance,  repeated  at 
short  intervals.  The  guide  declared  that  it  would  not 
be  advisable  to  approach  the  village  to-day,  for  that 
these  cries  betokened  the  Jcomou.  The  interpreter 
could  not  very  well  explain  what  that  meant,  but 
spoke  of  sorceries  and  fetes  and  "  beasts  of  MalinkeV 
Lieutenant  Valliere,  impatient  at  the  delay,  pushed 
on,  convinced  that  there  was  nothing  to  fear — Sori,  the 
tirailleurs,  and  the  muleteers  alone  following.  The 
guide  and  the  caravan  remained  where  they  were, 
overcome  by  terror. 

As  the  lieutenant  and  his  followers  drew  near  Sibi, 
the  cries  became  more  distinct.  The  voices  of  both 
young  and  old  people  were  heard  mingling  in  a 
sort  of  wailing,  plaintive  as  the  mountain  echoes 
dying  away  in  space.  At  length,  after  turning  a 
small  clump  of  trees,  Valliere  encountered  a  young 
Mandingue  carrying  a  calabash  containing  meal  and  a 
chicken.  The  boy  uttered  a  prolonged  cry,  and  run- 
ning up  to  the  strangers,  made  strenuous  gestures  with 
the  object  of  arresting  their  further  progress.  But 
the  sun  was  beating  down  on  the  heads  of  the  trav- 
ellers, and  a  broad-shadowed  bread-fruit  tree  at  the 
gate  of  the  village  invited  rest.  No  power  on  earth 
could  have  prevented  the  leader  at  that  moment  from 
seeking  the  protection  of  its  leafy  boughs. 

The  cause  of  the  commotion  was  the  komou,  a  re- 
ligious festival  which  precedes  the  sowing  of  the  seed. 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENVS  EXPEDITION.  241 

The  Mandingues,  like  all  the  Bambarras  of  the 
Upper  Niger,  are  given  over  to  fetich-worship. 
Each  village  has  its  sacred  grove,  impenetrable  except 
by  a  path  barred  with  thorny  branches.  Here,  in  the 
mysterious  shade,  is  held  the  terrible  rite  which  is 
the  master  of  the  destiny  of  the  village  and  its 
inhabitants.  The  village  attempts  no  enterprise  of 
any  hazard  without  consulting  the  wishes  of  the 
fetich.  If  the  people  are  about  to  make  war,  a  kid 
is  sacrificed,  its  blood  is  sprinkled  on  the  sacred  stones, 
and  by  certain  signs  the  sacrificing  priest  interprets 
the  decisions  of  the  fetich.  Then  the  warriors  march 
to  battle  with  confidence. 

In  the  same  way,  at  the  approach  of  seed-time  they 
sacrifice  to  the  god  in  order  to  obtain  a  good  sprouting 
of  the  grain ;  then  comes  the  fete,  which  is  to  insure 
a  good  harvest ;  and  lastly,  when  the  granaries  are  fall, 
another  visit  to  the  sacred  wood  is  made,  to  get  the 
assurance  that  no  enemy  will  have  part  or  lot  in  the 
harvests  of  the  year.  The  influence  of  this  super- 
stition makes  itself  felt  throughout  the  whole  social 
life  of  the  people ;  and  the  young  woman  who  desires 
a  prosperous  marriage  offers  her  sacrifice  of  eggs,  or  a 
measure  of  meal,  or  any  other  gift  which  she  thinks 
will  be  agreeable  to  the  great  dispenser  of  all  gifts. 

It  is  only  the  male  population  who  have  the  right 
of  approaching  the  sacred  grove,  and  since  early 
morning  on  the  day  when  Lieutenant  Valliere  arrived 

(94)  16 


242  CAPTAIN  OALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

at  Sibi,  they  had  been  rending  the  air  with  their  cries, 
with  the  object  of  drawing  down  the  fetich  into  the 
thicket. 

It  will  readily  be  understood  how  the  arrival  of 
the  strangers  interrupted  this  solemn  festival;  but  the 
old  man  made  a  path  for  the  white  leader.  "  Under- 
stand," exclaimed  one,  "  that  this  white  man  is  the 
first  who  has  visited  our  country  ;  and  remark,  too,  that 
he  has  come,  not  upon  an  ordinary  day,  but  in  the 
very  midst  of  the  komou.  Is  not  the  intention  of 
the  fetich  evident  ? "  And  thus  the  situation  of  the 
strangers,  so  menacing  in  the  morning,  became  more 
favourable. 

With  the  object  of  propitiating  the  notables  of 
the  village,  Lieutenant  Valliere  prepared  a  box  of 
yellow  cloths,  which  excited  universal  admiration ; 
probably  no  such  fine  stuffs  had  ever  been  seen  in 
Sibi.  The  old  chief  remarked,  that  the  good  omen  of 
the  white  man's  arrival  at  this  particular  season  was 
already  beginning  to  bear  fruits,  and  that  the  present 
komou  would  be  the  most  memorable  in  his  reign. 

The  fete  was  completely  absorbing  the  whole  pop- 
ulation, and  Lieutenant  Valliere  was  able  to  note  its 
curious  details.  Towards  noon  the  cries  had  ceased, 
and  every  man,  still  carrying  his  calabash  of  millet 
and  chicken,  was  directing  his  steps  towards  the 
sacred  wood.  There  the  groups  formed  themselves  in 
silence,  and  at  a  given  signal  all  at    once   raised  a 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  243 

great  shout.  Then  the  old  priests  entered  the 
thicket  and  began  the  sacrifice.  It  was  not  possible 
for  the  spectators  to  witness  the  vast  hecatombs  of 
chickens  which  then  took  place  within  the  wood. 

Both  old  and  young  men,  in  a  sort  of  wild  delirium, 
then  began  a  strange  and  excited  dance,  every  one 
striving  to  twist  and  contort  himself  as  much  as  possible. 
The  dance  continued  during  the  whole  time  the  sac- 
rifices within  the  wood  were  going  on.  There  was  no 
pause,  no  intermission  ;  many  dropped  down  breathless 
on  the  ground.  At  last  the  priests,  the  holocaust 
finished,  emerged  from  the  wood.  Then  there  was  a 
sort  of  assembly  held,  at  the  conclusion  of  which  all 
returned  to  the  village  with  their  empty  calabashes. 

Presently  everybody  returned,  carrying  dry 
branches,  and  walked  in  a  procession  along  the  path 
leading  to  the  wood.  Arrived  there,  the  crowd 
collected  before  the  entrance,  and  every  one  began 
violently  beating  the  ground,  at  the  same  time  uttering 
loud  cries.  The  object  of  this  last  ceremony  was,  it 
appeared,  to  get  the  fetich  to  depart. 

For  a  short  space  tranquillity  succeeded  these 
noisy  manifestations ;  but  the  sacred  part  of  the 
programme  fairly  finished,  abundant  drinking  and 
feasting  followed.  The  place  which  the  revellers  chose 
for  their  merry-making  was  the  beautiful  tree  under 
which  Lieutenant  Valliere  and  his  little  band  were 
encamped.      The  Lieutenant  deemed  it  prudent  to  seek 


244  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

the  intervention  o£  the  chief,  who  presently  appeared, 
very  much  the  worse  for  his  deep  potations,  and 
stammered  out  a  speech  which  in  no  wise  tended  to 
silence  the  uproar  going  on  around.  A  sort  of  fury 
began  to  take  possession  of  the  crowd,  and  a  general 
riot  seemed  imminent. 

The  tipsy  old  chief  began  to  weep,  at  which  several 
of  his  subjects  strove  to  console  and  sustain  him.  The 
scene  became  more  and  more  tumultuous,  and  at  last 
Lieutenant  Valliere  was  obliged  to  draw  his  revolver 
and  threaten  the  crowd.  But  by-and-by  the  groups 
began  to  disperse  themselves  over  the  plain  and  give 
themselves  up  to  their  various  diversions. 

On  the  following  morning  the  travellers  resumed 
the  march  without  much  regret,  and  arrived  next  at 
Nafadie',  the  chief  of  which  came  to  meet  them — an 
immense  man  with  a  great  jolly  face.  He  entertained 
the  white  man  hospitably,  and  provided  a  sheep  for 
his  followers.  Nafadie  is  a  village  with  a  population 
of  about  seven  hundred. 

One  of  the  villagers  told  Lieutenant  Valliere  that 
he  had  seen  a  white  man,  and  the  leader  did  not  doubt 
but  that  it  was  one  of  the  officers  of  the  expedition. 
He  asked  the  man  to  describe  Bammakou,  and  he 
replied,  as  others  had  done,  that  it  was  a  beautiful 
village,  whose  leading  men  were  very  wealthy.  This 
was  a  pleasant  prospect  after  the  desert  and  the  miser- 
able villages  of  Manding. 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  245 

Lieutenant  Valliere's  further  journey  was  undis- 
turbed and  uneventful.  He  quitted  Nafadie'  after 
making  liberal  presents  to  the  chief,  who  received 
them  with  every  manifestation  of  delight,  while  the 
women  prostrated  themselves  on  the  ground  in  token 
of  thanks. 

Between  Nafadie'  and  Bammakou  the  road  skirts  the 
mountains  of  Manding,  and  the  Niger.  The  path  is 
well  defined  and  easy.  No  obstacles  were  encountered, 
except  five  small  streams,  which  were  easily  crossed. 
The  last  of  these — the  Balanke — passed,  the  travellers 
journeyed  on  with  the  joy  of  men  whose  labours  and 
fatigues  were  over  and  who  were  about  to  rejoin  their 
friends.  On  the  following  day  Bammakou  was  reached. 
Here  a  considerable  disappointment  awaited  the  leader. 

After  all  the  flattering  accounts  of  Bammakou  which 
he  had  received  from  time  to  time  from  natives,  he 
expected  to  find  a  large  town,  an  important  commercial 
centre.  The  neighbourhood  of  an  African  market  is 
usually  a  bustling  and  animated  scene  enough ;  the 
approaches  are  full  of  traders  going  and  coming.  But 
here  there  was  nothing  of  all  this — nothing  but  the 
profoundest  solitude.  Lieutenant  Valliere  was  told  that 
this  state  of  things  was  due  to  wars  with  the  Tou- 
couleurs ;  but  this  did  not  seem  altogether  to  explain 
the  almost  absolute  want  of  life  in  the  place. 

But  another  question  soon  absorbed  Lieutenant 
Valliere.     Where  was  the  mission  ?     With  its  numerous 


246  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

following,  it  would  have  been  certain  to  give  life  to  the 
neighbourhood.  The  lieutenant's  surprise  gave  place 
to  apprehension.  Putting  his  horse  to  the  gallop  he 
approached  the  gate  of  the  village ;  but  there  he  was 
stopped  by  a  native,  who  motioned  to  him  mysteriously. 
This  reception  increased  his  anxiety ;  but  he  was 
presently  reassured  by  the  sight  of  Lieutenant  Pietri. 
In  a  few  words  he  was  made  aware  of  the  situation. 
Bammakou  was  now  nothing  more  than  a  big  village, 
ruined  by  war,  and  without  commercial  importance. 
As  to  Captain  Gallieni  and  his  followers,  they  were 
still  to  arrive,  and  Pietri  had  had  no  communication 
with  them  for  many  days.  Rumours  of  the  intended 
attack  upon  the  mission  had  arrived,  however ;  and  as 
no  word  of  their  comrades  reached  Valliere  and  Pietri 
during  the  evening,  they  were  filled  with  anxiety. 
Their  anxious  forebodings  were  sufficiently  realized, 
for  next  day  they  were  to  learn  the  misfortune 
which  had  overtaken  and  all  but  annihilated  the 
expedition. 

We  now  take  up  again  Captain  Gallieni's  narrative 
at  the  point  at  which  we  left  it — the  arrival  of  the 
expedition  at  Bammakou,  and  the  reunion  with 
Lieutenant  Valliere.  The  chief  of  Bammakou  received 
the  mission  hospitably,  Valliere  having  prepared  the 
way.  The  caravan  was  in  a  most  deplorable  con- 
dition, destitute  of  provisions,  of  medicines,  and  of 
presents  for  the  tribes.     The  men  were  wounded,  sick, 


CAPTAIN  OALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  247 

and  weary ;  arms  had  been  lost  and  ammunition  ex- 
hausted. With  very  anxious  hearts  the  reunited 
leaders  took  counsel  together,  when  Captain  Gallieni 
proposed  to  push  on  the  march  in  the  face  of  every- 
thing. Officers  and  men  alike  supported  the  leader 
in  his  resolution,  and  it  was  determined  to  continue 
the  journey. 

But  it  had  become  a  pressing  need  that  despatches 
should  be  sent  to  St.  Louis.  Dr.  Bayol,  whose  special 
duties  in  connection  with  the  expedition  might  now 
be  considered  over,  offered  to  make  the  journey  back 
to  St.  Louis  alone,  with  Sori,  the  interpreter,  as  a 
guide.  The  doctor  took  with  him  a  full  and  exact 
written  account  of  the  attack  upon  the  mission  at 
Dio  and  all  that  followed  thereupon,  which  he  was  to 
deliver  into  the  hands  of  the  governor.  He  was  then 
to  send  on  as  rapidly  as  possible  a  supply  of  medicines 
for  the  caravan,  whose  stock  was  now  reduced  to  thirty 
grains  of  quinine,  and  the  winter  season  already  close 
at  hand. 

Captain  Gallieni  also  sent  back  the  ass-drivers,  who 
were  of  no  further  service,  and  who  simply  terrified 
by  their  uncouth  and  miserable  appearance  the  tribes 
through  which  the  caravan  passed.  It  was  with 
regret  that  the  leader  took  this  step,  for  the  poor 
fellows  had  shown  themselves  faithful  and  even 
devoted  in  his  service.  They  were  liberally  recom- 
pensed for  their  labours  and  fatigues,  and  commended 


248  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

to  the  attention  of  the  governor  of  St.  Louis  in  a 
letter  to  be  delivered  by  Dr.  Bayol. 

The  expedition  resumed  the  march,  and  on  the  15th 
of  May  reached  the  village  of  Joliba  —  Dr.  Bayol 
meanwhile  taking  the  route  to  Kita,  the  party  of  ass- 
drivers  in  his  wake.  Pietri  and  Alassane  preceded 
the  caravan  to  the  banks  of  the  river  in  order  to  make 
preparations  for  the  crossing.  An  hour's  march  across 
a  wide  grassy  plain  brought  the  explorers  to  the  banks 
of  the  great  river  of  Soudan.  It  was  with  feelings  of 
emotion  that  Captain  Gallieni  and  his  comrades  gazed 
upon  the  mighty  water-course.  The  banks  were  of 
no  great  height,  but  the  river  rolled  between  them,  its 
immense  volume  of  water  and  numerous  islands  dotting 
its  surface  giving  to  it  a  picturesque  and  imposing 
appearance.  The  travellers  crossed  the  ford  in  canoes, 
small,  leaky  craft,  that  took  in  water  at  all  sides. 
The  horses  and  mules,  held  by  the  spahis  who  were 
seated  in  the  canoes,  crossed  by  swimming. 

By  five  o'clock  men  and  animals  were  on  the  other 
side  of  the  Joliba,  where  the  mission  was  favourably 
received  by  a  party  of  Toucouleurs,  one  of  whom,  a 
man  with  an  intelligent  face,  advanced  towards  the 
leader,  and  having  made  the  customary  salaam,  spoke 
thus : — 

"  The  country  is  yours,  and  you  are  at  home,  since 
you  come  as  ambassadors  to  the  sultan  of  Segou. 
We  know  the  powerful  chief  who  has  sent  you,  and 


CAPTAIN  QALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  249 

my  master,  who  rules  over  this  village  in  the  name  of 
Amadou,  will  be  happy  to  receive  you.  He  sends  me 
to  you  to  say,  '  Bismillah  ! '  You  have  left  your 
native  land  and  encountered  many  toils ;  but  now  all 
that  is  over.  You  are  at  home.  '  Bismillah  !  bis- 
millah ! ' " 

These  were  agreeable  words  to  listen  to  after  the 
brutal  reception  of  the  expedition  at  the  hands  of  the 
Bambarras  of  Bele'dougou.  The  mission  quickly  ar- 
rived at  Toniella,  and  passed  through  the  gates. 
Huts  were  placed  at  the  service  of  Captain  Gallieni 
and  his  followers ;  chickens,  rice,  and  butter  were  pro- 
vided for  the  men,  and  corn  for  the  horses.  The 
hearts  of  the  travel-worn  white  men  were  filled  with 
pleasurable  emotions  by  this  amicable  reception. 

The  travellers  lay  down  to  sleep  on  their  mats  in 
peace  and  security ;  but,  alas  !  all  the  night  their 
slumbers  were  broken  by  the  barking  of  dogs,  the 
noise  of  the  tom-tom,  and  the  shouting  and  singing  of 
tipsy  Bambarras,  who  were  speeding  the  night  with 
deep  potations  of  dolo. 

On  the  following  morning  Captain  Gallieni  took 
advantage  of  the  friendly  attitude  of  his  hosts  to 
consult  with  them  about  the  wounded,  who  were  no 
longer  able  to  support  the  fatigues  of  the  journey. 
The  people  agreed  to  receive  and  tend  the  sick  men, 
who  were  to  rejoin  the  caravan  when  they  were  again 
in  a  condition  to  travel.     In  return  for  this  service 


250  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

the  leader  left  behind  him  a  number  of  guns  to  pay 
for  the  board  and  care  of  the  wounded. 

The  march  now  led  towards  the  east,  under  the  con- 
duct of  a  guide.  The  country  traversed  was  exceed- 
ingly fertile,  watered  by  the  Niger  and  its  chief 
affluents.  The  land  produces  abundance  of  maize, 
rice,  cotton,  tobacco,  indigo,  and  millet,  while  vast 
forests  of  butter-trees  abound — a  magnificent  territory 
awaiting  European  settlement  and  improved  cultiva- 
tion. In  addition  to  its  agricultural  resources  the 
district  is,  moreover,  rich  in  minerals. 

The  village  of  Cissina  was  reached.  Shortly  after 
the  arrival  of  the  expedition  at  this  point  the  white 
men  witnessed  a  Bambarra  funeral.  First  came  a 
score  of  women  weeping  violently.  Next  two  griots — 
one  with  a  small  tom-tom  chanted  the  praises  of  the 
departed.  Then  came  the  corpse,  carried  by  six  men 
in  a  finely-woven  net.  Last  followed  the  parents  and 
friends  of  the  dead  man,  armed  with  guns.  The 
Bambarras  always  bury  their  dead  close  to  their 
villages,  the  chiefs  being  interred  in  their  own  huts. 
While  the  earth  is  being  thrown  upon  the  corpse,  all 
the  friends  of  the  dead  man  make  believe  of  being 
buried  in  the  tomb  with  him. 

Tadiana  was  the  next  halt,  an  important  Toucou- 
leur  fort,  with  a  population  partly  of  Bambarras,  partly 
of  Sarracolets.  On  the  night  of  the  17th  of  May  the 
mission  reached  Diba,  where  they  were  met  by  a  party 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  251 

of  Bambarras,  who  examined  the  strangers  closely  by 
the  light  of  their  torches,  touching  their  hands  and 
faces  to  assure  themselves  that  they  were  white  men. 

On  the  following  day  Kobile"  was  reached — a  small 
village  of  some  three  hundred  inhabitants.  Here  corn 
was  procured  for  the  horses,  and  the  chief  himself 
brought  a  sheep  for  the  strangers,  while  his  brother 
offered  a  chicken,  saying  : — 

"  I  give  you  this  chicken.  Were  I  rich  and  power- 
ful I  should  give  you  a  much  finer  present;  but  as  I  am 
neither  rich  nor  powerful,  I  cannot  entertain  as  you 
deserve — a  people  so  important  as  you — and  I  much 
regret  the  smallness  of  my  gift." 

The  white  men  were  provided  with  a  good  hut,  the 
walls  of  which  were  very  curious,  being  covered  with 
hieroglyphics,  while  from  the  roof  were  suspended 
amulets,  castanets,  etc.  But  the  most  curious  object 
in  the  collection  was  a  sword,  evidently  of  European 
make,  bearing  this  legend :  "  Never  draw  me  without 
cause :  never  sheathe  me  without  honour."  The 
weapon  bore  the  appearance  of  being  of  very  ancient 
manufacture. 

On  the  19th  the  expedition  crossed  the  Faya,  an 
important  affluent  of  the  Niger,  and  arrived  at  Niague, 
a  village  of  some  five  hundred  inhabitants.  After 
halting  at  several  intermediate  stages  the  travellers 
reached  Sanankoro.  Here  they  rested  the  best  part 
of  a  day,  the  leaders  passing  the  time  in  speculation 


252  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI' S  EXPEDITION. 

as  to  how  far  they  might  still  be  from  Segou,  which 
seemed  to  get  further  and  further  off  every  day. 
Here  Amadou  at  last  gave  some  sign  of  his  existence, 
for  Alpha  came  to  announce  that  two  men  from  the 
Toucouleur  capital  had  arrived  and  requested  to  speak 
with  Captain  Gallieni. 

They  were  introduced,  and  proved  to  be  two  Sofas. 
They  said  that  they  were  come  from  the  sultan  to 
inform  the  white  leader  that  he  was  to  remain  where 
they,  the  envoys,  found  him ;  in  whatever  village  he 
might  be,  there  he  was  to  stay  for  the  meantime. 

Captain  Gallieni  protested  energetically  against  this, 
saying  that  two  months  had  been  consumed  in  the 
march ;  and  was  the  mission  to  be  detained  in  a  small 
village,  deprived  of  all  resources,  and  the  winter  rains 
setting  in,  blotting  out  the  paths  and  preventing  all 
access  to  the  capital  ?  The  two  Sofas  answered,  that 
they  were  simply  transmitting  the  orders  of  Lam 
Dioulbe'.  Those  orders  were  clear  and  formulated  : 
they,  the  envoys,  were  to  arrest  the  mission 
wherever  they  met  it.  They  knew,  moreover,  that 
Sanankoro  could  not  supply  sufficient  food  for  the 
men  and  horses  of  the  expedition.  The  white  leaders 
should  push  on  to  Niansonnah,  a  richer  village,  and 
there  await  the  answer  of  the  sultan. 

Captain  Gallieni  then  told  the  emissaries  that  he 
had  written  a  letter  in  Arabic  which  he  wished  to 
send  to  Amadou  by  Lieutenant  Pietri,  accompanied  by 


CAPTAIN  QALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION.  253 

the  interpreter  Alpha  Sega.  No  objection  was  made 
to  this,  the  men  answering  that  Amadou  would  send 
some  of  his  chief  men  to  receive  the  white  man's  com- 
munications. 

Sanankoro  was  left  on  the  24  th,  Niamana  was 
passed,  and  the  camp  pitched  at  Niansonnah,  which 
was  found  to  be  a  far  less  prosperous  place  than  the 
two  Sofas  had  reported.  It  was  with  great  difficulty 
that  enough  food  was  obtained  to  sustain  the  cara- 
van for  four  days.  On  the  29  th  Captain  Gallieni 
summoned  the  two  Sofas  and  informed  them  that  as  no 
reply  had  yet  come  from  Amadou,  the  expedition  was 
about  to  quit  the  village  and  resume  the  journey. 
Seeing  that  it  would  be  useless  to  try  to  detain  the 
caravan  further,  the  two  men  decided  to  take  them- 
selves off,  satisfied  of  the  consequences  that  would 
ensue  from  this  disobedience  of  the  sultan's  orders. 

Resuming  the  march,  the  expedition  reached  Dindian, 
and  Soi'a,  and,  after  traversing  a  wide  plain,  Nango. 
Here  the  travellers  were  met  by  a  party  of  twelve 
horsemen,  who  escorted  them  to  the  village,  where 
huts  had  been  provided  for  the  accommodation  of  the 
leaders.  About  mid-day  Captain  Gallieni  sought  an 
interview  with  Marico,  the  chief  of  the  village,  who, 
after  the  customary  salaam,  spoke  thus : — 

"  I  was  at  Segou  when  Amadou  was  informed  of 
your  arrival.  He  at  once  ordered  me  to  depart  in 
order  to  receive  you.     I  was  to  make  you  welcome, 


254  CAPTAIN  GALLIENVS  EXPEDITION. 

and  to  provide  food  for  your  men  and  animals.  You, 
for  your  part,  were  to  remain  here  at  Nango,  to  await 
the  answer  of  the  sultan.  Lam  Dioulbe  knows  all 
that  has  happened  to  you.  In  regard  to  the  wrong 
you  have  suffered,  it  is  for  him  to  avenge  you.  You 
are  the  ambassadors  of  a  powerful  chief,  and  you  shall 
be  treated  accordingly." 

All  this  was  very  fine,  but  it  was  not  exactly  the 
point.  Captain  Gallieni  tried  to  make  Marico  compre- 
hend that  the  mission  was  at  its  last  extremity,  that 
men  and  animals  could  do  no  more,  and  that  after  all 
the  expedition  had  suffered,  even  such  short  delays  as 
this  prejudiced  the  march.  Marico  replied  tranquilly 
that  he  was  but  transmitting  the  orders  of  Amadou, 
and  that  he  was  about  to  depart  for  Segou  at  moon- 
rise,  to  seek  the  will  of  his  master. 

Marico  accordingly  departed,  and  returned  in  a  day 
or  two.  He  did  not  give  Captain  Gallieni  much 
satisfaction  by  the  news  he  brought,  for  he  declared 
that  Amadou  advised  the  white  man  to  bear  in  mind, 
when  he  felt  impatient,  that  he  was  travelling  through 
a  stranger's  country,  and  should  therefore  submit  to 
the  wishes  of  the  chief  of  that  country,  who  would 
presently  send  two  envoys  to  treat  with  the  white 
man. 

On  the  5th  June  these  two  ambassadors  duly  made 
their  appearance.  They  were  Samba  N'Diaye,  the 
chief  engineer  of  the  sultan,  and  Boubakar  Saada,  a 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENI' S  EXPEDITION.  255 

notable  of  Amadou's  court.  The  two  ambassadors 
spoke  much  to  the  same  effect  as  the  Sofa  men  had 
previously  done — promises  on  the  part  of  Amadou 
mingled  with  half -threats.  Captain  Gallieni  resolved 
to  send  back  to  the  sultan,  by  Samba  N'Diaye  and 
Boubakar,  an  exact  statement  of  his  position  and  com- 
plaints. The  envoys  returned  in  a  day  or  two,  bring- 
ing the  same  vague  words — promises  and  interdicts 
which  always  composed  Amadou's  answers,  and  against 
which  it  was  useless  and  even  dangerous  on  the  part 
of  the  white  men  to  do  more  than  remonstrate. 

At  last  Amadou  promised  to  send  one  of  his  chief 
ministers  to  make  a  treaty  with  the  mission;  and  after 
much  delay  and  time  wasted,  this  meeting  did  at 
length  take  place.  On  the  13  th  of  October,  Se'idou 
Dieylia,  Amadou's  prime  minister,  arrived  at  Nango 
with  great  pomp  and  a  large  following.  The  negotia- 
tions lasted  for  nearly  a  week,  and  after  interminable 
discussion  Captain  Gallieni  obtained  from  Se'idou  a  deed 
placing  the  Niger  under  French  protectorate,  from  its 
source  as  far  as  Timbuctoo.  On  the  3rd  November 
the  treaty,  drawn  up  in  French  and  Arabic,  was  signed 
by  all  the  parties  concerned,  except  by  Amadou  him- 
self. Se'idou  was  to  take  the  document  to  Segou  for 
the  sultan  to  sign,  and  promised  Captain  Gallieni  that 
this  would  be  done  in  the  course  of  a  few  days. 

The  few  days  lengthened  themselves  out  into  weeks 
and  then  into  months,  and  still  the  treaty  remained 


256  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

unsigned  by  the  sultan.  Every  possible  pretext 
which  the  wily  Mussulman  could  devise  for  delay- 
ing to  append  his  sign-manual  to  the  document,  with- 
out which  it  was  valueless,  was  brought  forward. 
Those  at  the  court  who  were  wholly  unfriendly  to  the 
mission,  alleged  that  its  object  was  not  to  conclude  a 
commercial  and  friendly  treaty,  but  to  make  plans  of 
the  country,  to  establish  European  colonies,  and  to  en- 
list the  hostile  tribes  of  Bambarras  and  Malinkes 
against  the  sultan.  To  these  advisers  Amadou  was 
only  too  ready  to  listen. 

The  mission  spent  weary  months  at  Nango.  One 
after  the  other  the  four  white  men  were  attacked  by 
fever,  and  lay  ill  and  weak  in  the  midst  of  a  strange 
and  hostile  country.  The  food  that  could  be  obtained 
was  poor  and  insufficient ;  and  over  and  above  these 
physical  troubles,  there  was  the  daily  mental  anxiety 
and  worry,  the  daily  deferred  hope  that  Amadou 
would  keep  his  word  and  allow  the  mission  to  depart. 
The  horses  died  too,  and  unless  Amadou  supplied 
their  places,  how  should  the  travellers  be  able  to 
accomplish  their  return  journey  ? 

But  at  last  Amadou,  urged  by  the  reiterated  demands 
of  Captain  Gallieni,  placed  his  signature  to  the  treaty 
and  told  the  mission  to  prepare  for  departure.  With 
indescribable  joy  the  white  men  began  to  get  every- 
thing ready  for  the  return  march — to  prepare  means 
of  transport,  to  repair  clothes  for  the  journey,  and 


CAPTAIN  GALLIENVS  EXPEDITION.  257 

re-equip  the  caravan  as  speedily  and  as  well  as  was 
possible  in  the  circumstances. 

It  was  not  until  the  10th  of  March  that  Amadou 
returned  the  treaty  signed  to  Captain  Gallieni.  A 
few  days  after,  he  sent  five  good  horses,  three  oxen 
for  carrying  the  baggage,  and  a  supply  of  rice,  meal, 
salt,  and  other  provisions ;  and  besides  this,  a  present 
of  gold,  and  twenty  pieces  of  cloth  of  Segou  work- 
manship. On  the  arrival  of  the  expedition  at  St. 
Louis,  the  gold  was  distributed  among  the  interpreters 
of  the  mission.  Thus,  in  a  measure,  Amadou  made 
up  for  the  delay,  anxiety,  sickness,  and  general 
wretchedness  which  he  had  for  many  months  caused 
the  mission  to  suffer. 

On  the  21st  March  1881,  Nango  opened  its  gates 
to  allow  the  expedition  to  depart.  The  poor  people 
of  the  village  had  done  their  best  to  treat  the  white 
men  kindly,  and  the  whole  population  followed  them 
outside  the  gates,  crying,  "  Bonjour,  Toubab!  Bonjour, 
Toubab  ! "  Captain  Gallieni  and  his  companions  did 
not  depart  without  leaving  behind  them  many  little 
souvenirs  among  the  simple  village  people. 

The  return  journey  led  along  the  Niger,  the  route 
followed  being  very  much  the  same  as  the  previous 
one.  Kantara,  one  of  Amadou's  chief  agents,  was 
charged  with  the  convoy  of  the  expedition  as  far  as 
Tourella. 

On    the    22  nd    March    the   village    of    Sougoulani 

(94)  17 


258  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

was  reached.  Here  the  travellers  were  the  witnesses 
of  a  dreadful  spectacle.  Amadou,  with  the  character- 
istic cruelty  of  the  Mussulmans,  had  ordered  a  number 
of  prisoners  of  war  to  be  put  to  death,  with  the 
object  of  inspiring  terror  among  the  neighbouring 
tribes ;  and  now  Captain  Gallieni  and  his  comrades 
beheld  the  bodies  of  these  victims  heaped  up  in  the 
village  market-place,  the  prey  of  hyenas  and  birds 
— a  veritable  human  shambles.  An  entire  caravan, 
consisting  of  sixteen  persons,  of  all  ages  and  both 
sexes,  had  been  captured  by  Amadou's  emissaries  and 
pitilessly  put  to  death.  As  the  white  men  rode  past 
this  sad  and  horrible  spectacle,  they  could  not  but 
reflect  on  the  danger  to  which  they  had  been  exposed 
at  Nango,  living  so  long  at  the  mercy  of  the  fickle 
and  sombre  tyrant  of  Segou. 

On  the  27th  the  journey  proved  full  of  difficulties, 
the  passage  of  the  little  river  Faya  alone  delaying 
the  caravan  an  hour.  The  river  was  fringed  with 
beautiful  fig-trees,  whose  branches  projected  far  over 
the  water.  Some  of  the  men  entered  the  stream  to 
help  in  getting  the  animals  and  baggage  across. 
Others  scrambled  across  along  the  stems  and  branches 
of  the  trees,  some  of  which  extended  right  across  the 
river.  The  leaders  adopted  this  method  of  crossing, 
and  the  party  swarming  along  the  boughs  from  bank 
to  bank  looked  ludicrously  like  a  troop  of  monkeys. 

On  the  28  th  Tadiana  was  reached,  and  a  halt  of 


CAPTAIN  G  ALLIEN VS  EXPEDITION.  259 

an  hour  made.  The  chief,  Daba,  confirmed  the  news, 
which  had  already  reached  the  leaders  of  the  expedi- 
tion, of  the  arrival  of  a  French  force  at  Kita.  Daba 
spoke  of  the  astonishing  effect  which  this  event  had 
produced  upon  the  surrounding  tribes,  the  turbulent 
Talibe's  being  struck  dumb  with  amazement. 

The  march  was  resumed  across  a  plain  very  much 
cut  up  by  the  rains,  and  the  bivouac  was  made  at 
Cissina,  in  a  splendid  hut  formed  of  bamboos  and 
the  stalks  of  the  millet.  Here  an  agreeable  day  was 
spent  by  the  travellers,  who  awaited  the  morrow  in 
the  pleasant  anticipation  of  reaching  the  other  bank 
of  the  Niger.  The  hut  was  visited  by  crowds  of  the 
natives,  curious  to  see  the  white  men,  who,  they 
believed,  had  been  abandoned  to  death  by  the  tyrant 
sultan,  but  whom  the  latest  reports  had  surrounded 
with  fame. 

Tourella  was  reached  on  the  29  th  March.  Here 
Captain  Gallieni  parted  with  his  remaining  stock  of 
cowries  to  the  chief,  Kantara.  Valliere  proceeded  in 
advance,  to  announce  the  arrival  of  the  party  at 
Nagadie.  Kantara  gave  the  leaders  a  number  of 
particulars  in  regard  to  the  eventful  battle  at  Dio, 
from  which  it  appeared  that  the  Bambarras  had  suf- 
fered severely.  They  had,  in  a  word,  reaped  the  just 
reward  of  their  treachery  and  ingratitude ;  and  the 
result  of  the  conflict,  severely  as  the  mission  itself  had 
suffered,  had  inspired  the  attackers  with  a  wholesome 


260  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI'S  EXPEDITION. 

dread  of  the  white  men.  Towards  noon  of  the  same 
day  the  caravan  reached  the  banks  of  the  river, 
where  canoes  were  in  readiness  for  the  passage  across. 
The  party  embarked  in  the  midst  of  a  great  crowd  of 
negroes,  gathered  from  all  the  surrounding  villages. 
Some  natives,  who  had  accompanied  the  white  men 
from  Segou,  were  concealed  among  Captain  Gallieni's 
own  followers,  with  the  design  of  crossing  to  the 
right  bank  of  the  Niger.  These  endeavoured  to 
embark  in  the  canoes ;  but  the  watchful  Kantara  was 
on  the  outlook  for  all  such.  Among  these  poor 
people  was  one  old  Ouoloff  woman  who  had  lost  her 
husband  in  one  of  the  raids  of  Amadou,  and  who 
now  wished  to  rejoin  her  husband.  The  white  men 
interceded  in  her  case,  but  Kantara  was  inflexible. 
It  was  as  much  as  his  life  was  worth  to  listen  to  her 
entreaties,  and  it  was  in  vain  that  the  poor  old 
creature  rent  the  air  with  her  cries,  offering  to  serve 
as  a  slave  to  the  white  men  if  she  might  only  go  with 
them. 

In  the  space  of  two  hours  the  whole  caravan  were 
on  the  opposite  bank  of  the  Niger.  It  was  a  curious 
sio-ht  to  see  the  men,  both  Toucouleurs  and  Bambarras, 
uniting  to  take  a  firm  resolution  that  this  was  the 
last  time  they  should  ever  accept  hospitality  from 
Amadou.  Previously  these  poor  people  had  had  a 
great  belief  and  confidence  in  the  generosity,  the 
magnificence,  and  the  omnipotence  of  the  son  of  El 


CAPTAIN  G ALLIEN VS  EXPEDITION.  261 

Hadj.  But  their  six  months'  sojourn  at  Nango,  with 
its  unceasing  anxieties  of  every  sort,  had  quite  dis- 
illusioned them  on  this  score,  and  proved  to  them 
beyond  all  doubt  how  wretched  the  life  of  Amadou's 
subjects  was  compared  with  that  of  the  tribes  along 
the  Senegal  placed  under  the  French  protectorate. 

The  march  was  resumed  in  the  direction  of  Nafadie, 
across  an  extensive  grassy  plain.  As  the  caravan 
approached  the  village  of  Joliba,  a  crowd  of  people 
was  perceived  in  the  distance  gathered  under  some 
bread-fruit  trees.  Captain  Gallieni's  anxiety  was 
raised  to  behold  Lieutenant  Valliere  stretched  motion- 
less on  the  ground  at  the  foot  of  a  tree,  with  two  or 
three  natives  beside  him  endeavouring  by  means  of 
vigorous  friction  to  revive  him.  In  a  few  minutes 
more,  Gallieni,  Pietri,  and  Tautain  were  at  the  side  of 
their  comrade,  who  presently  opened  his  eyes.  The 
doctor  then  examined  him,  and,  to  the  great  relief  of 
all,  discovered  that  he  was  not  hurt  in  any  way. 

Valliere  thus  narrated  the  cause  of  his  present 
situation : — After  quitting  Joliba  in  the  morning,  he 
was  deserted  by  his  guides,  and  left  to  his  own 
resources.  He  chose  a  path  which,  as  he  thought,  led 
to  Nafadie',  but  which  in  reality  led  to  the  mountains. 
After  many  turnings  and  detours,  he  at  length  came 
upon  a  village  situated  in  a  narrow  and  rugged  gorge. 
It  appeared  that  that  same  morning  a  party  of 
Toucouleur    horsemen    had    made  a  raid    upon    this 


262  CAPTAIN  GALLIENVS  EXPEDITION. 

village,  and  carried  off  a  number  of  young  girls  who 
were  watching  the  flocks.  The  inhabitants  mistook 
Valliere  and  his  companions  for  a  part  of  these  rob- 
bers, and  forthwith  attacked  him.  Some  of  the  tirail- 
leurs who  accompanied  him  were  made  prisoners,  and 
one  was  seriously  wounded.  Valliere  himself  escaped 
the  bullets  of  his  pursuers,  which  whistled  about  his 
ears,  and  reached  Joliba  again  half  dead  with  hunger 
and  fatigue.  Before  the  day  ended,  however,  the 
lieutenant  had  recovered,  and  was  able  to  resume  the 
journey. 

The  people  of  Nafadie*  gave  the  mission  a  hospi- 
table reception,  providing  mutton,  rice,  and  couscous  in 
abundance.  Gallieni  took  advantage  of  the  friendly 
attitude  of  the  inhabitants  to  demonstrate  to  them 
the  pacific  intentions  of  the  whites,  and  how  necessary 
it  was  that  the  chiefs  of  Nafadie  should  unite  against 
Amadou,  whose  troopers  were  constantly  carrying  off 
their  women  and  harrying  their  flocks.  The  reply 
of  the  chiefs  was  unanimous.  They  were  perfectly 
willing  to  place  themselves  under  the  French  pro- 
tectorate, and  to  break  through  the  intolerable  domi- 
nation of  the  Toucouleurs.  Captain  Gallieni  then 
unfolded  to  them  the  plan  of  the  treaty,  and  the 
notables  of  the  village  forthwith  affixed  their  signa- 
tures to  the  document. 

On  the  30th  of  March,  the  caravan  took  the  road 
for  Tabou,  halting  at  Kamalia,  Sibi,  and  Nienkema, 


CAPTAIN  G  ALLIEN VS  EXPEDITION.  263 

in  order  that  the  signatures  of  the  chiefs  of  these 
villages  might  be  obtained  to  the  treaty.  Captain 
Gallieni's  task  was  now  a  light  one,  Amadou  being 
cordially  detested  throughout  all  this  region.  The 
tribes  appeared  perfectly  satisfied  to  see  the  whites 
established  at  Makadiambougou.  A  day  was  spent  at 
Tabou,  where  the  inhabitants,  notwithstanding  their 
simple  savagedom,  offered  the  mission  every  hos- 
pitality, providing  corn,  water,  wood,  etc.  This  vil- 
lage absolutely  hangs,  as  it  were,  on  the  flank  of  the 
mountain,  guarded  by  huge  blocks  of  stone,  a  natural 
protection  against  the  raids  of  Toucouleur  troopers. 

On  the  31st,  Narena  was  reached,  a  large  Malinke 
village,  whose  chief  received  the  white  men  court- 
eously, though  he  had  treated  Valliere  in  a  consider- 
ably more  rough  and  ready  fashion  some  months 
previously.  An  ox  was  presented  to  the  leaders,  and 
the  people  disputed  among  themselves  as  to  who 
should  entertain  the  men  of  the  expedition.  The 
treaty  was  signed  with  enthusiasm,  and  Captain  Gal- 
lieni  now  felt  sure  that  Sultan  Amadou  might  regard 
as  lost  all  the  provinces  in  the  valley  of  the  Bakhoy. 

At  Narena,  Captain  Gallieni  received  precise  news 
as  to  what  had  been  occurring  at  Kita.  Two  mes- 
sengers arrived  from  Lieutenant  -  Colonel  Borgnis- 
Desbordes,  whose  anxiety  had  been  great  on  account 
of  the  mission,  the  arrival  of  which  he  waited  for 
with  eagerness. 


264  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI' S  EXPEDITION. 

Nardna  was  quitted  next  day,  and  a  short  halt 
made  at  Koremakhava,  whose  chief  joined  the  alliance. 
Niagassola  was  reached  on  April  2nd,  whence  Captain 
Gallieni  despatched  a  letter  to  Kita  to  announce  his 
arrival.  A  parley  was  held  with  the  chief  of  the 
ancient  village  of  Bangassi,  which  the  expedition  had 
found  deserted  and  in  ruins  a  year  before,  and  whose 
inhabitants  were  for  the  most  part  refugees  from 
Niagassola  and  the  neighbourhood.  Captain  Gallieni 
spoke  of  the  era  of  peace  and  prosperity  which 
awaited  all  the  tribes  of  this  region  upon  the  settle- 
ment of  the  whites  at  Kita,  and  engaged  to  repeople 
the  village  of  Bangassi. 

After  leaving  Niagassola,  Captain  Gallieni  presented 
the  treaty  for  signature  to  the  chief,  Mambi,  who 
showed  himself  very  anxious  that  his  village  should 
be  chosen  as  the  site  of  the  French  colony  that  was 
to  be  established  between  Kita  and  the  Niger. 

The  3rd  of  April  was  passed  at  the  little  village  of 
Koukouroni,  whose  chief,  a  handsome  old  man  of 
somewhat  sad  bearing,  apologized  for  not  being  able 
to  welcome  the  mission  in  a  more  hospitable  fashion. 
The  Toucouleurs  had  robbed  him  of  everything.  The 
white  leader  endeavoured  to  reassure  and  console  the 
old  chief,  and  presented  him  with  a  small  sum  of 
money. 

On  the  following  day  the  caravan  rested  at  Mour- 
goula,  where  the  white  men  were  received  with  much 


CAPTAIN  G  ALLIEN  J' S  EXPEDITION.  265 

ceremony.  Towards  mid-day  Captain  Gallieni  received 
a  letter  from  Lieutenant-Colonel  Borgnis-Desbordes, 
which  conveyed  a  gracious  welcome,  and  expressed 
with  what  impatience  the  arrival  of  the  mission  at 
Kita  was  looked  forward  to.  Mourgoula  was  quitted 
in  the  evening,  and  the  night  passed  at  Sitakoto.  At 
Goubanko  the  travellers  were  received  by  MM.  de 
Gasquet  and  Morlot,  whom  the  governor  of  the  colony 
had  sent  to  meet  them. 

A  great  change  had  passed  over  the  country  since 
the  setting  out  of  the  expedition  a  year  back.  The 
French  flag  now  floated  on  the  fort  that  had  been 
raised  near  Makadiambougou,  and  the  French  influence 
extended  over  a  wide  area  of  the  Niger  basin. 

The  envoy  of  the  Sultan  Amadou  was  unable  to 
conceal  his  surprise  at  finding  the  white  men  so  firmly 
established  within  so  short  a  distance  of  Mourgoula, 
one  of  his  own  possessions. 

On  the  16th  of  April  the  expedition  arrived  at  the 
confluence  of  the  Bafing  and  the  Bakhoy,  where,  on 
the  right  bank  of  the  former  river,  a  military  post  was 
established. 

On  the  23  rd,  Bakel  was  reached.  Here  boats 
were  procured  to  transport  the  members  of  the  expe- 
dition as  far  as  Podor.  On  the  27th  the  mission 
found  itself  in  an  enemy's  country.  The  river-side 
natives  showed  themselves  exceedingly  hostile,  at- 
tempting to  arrest  the  passage  of  the  boats  down  the 


266  CAPTAIN  GALLIENI  'S  EXPEDITION. 

river.  The  leaders  of  the  expedition  were  obliged  to 
have  recourse  to  their  fire-arms  before  their  assailants 
were  driven  back. 

On  the  6th  of  May,  Salde*  was  reached,  and  the 
expedition  was  now  well  beyond  hostile  ground.  A 
steamboat,  the  Archimedes,  took  on  board  Captain 
Gallieni  and  his  companions,  who  reached  St.  Louis 
on  the  12th  May,  and  were  welcomed  by  their  friends 
there  with  many  warm  congratulations  on  their  safe 
return. 

The  geographical  results  of  Captain  Gallieni's  voy- 
age were  important,  and  the  leader  received,  in  recog- 
nition of  his  services,  the  medal  of  the  Geographical 
Society  of  Paris,  the  gold  medal  of  the  Society  of 
Bordeaux,  and  a  diploma  of  honour  from  the  French 
Geographical  Congress  of  1882. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

DR.     BARTH'S     TRAVELS. 

In  the  year  1849  the  British  Government  resolved  to 
despatch  an  expedition  to  Central  Africa,  partly  to 
explore  the  country,  and  partly  to  establish  friendly 
relations  with  the  chiefs  and  rulers  of  the  various 
territories  in  the  far  interior.  The  command  of  the 
expedition  was  intrusted  to  Mr.  Richardson,  who  had 
already  distinguished  himself  in  African  travel.  He 
was  joined  by  Dr.  Barth  and  Dr.  Overweg,  two  German 
gentlemen  who  volunteered  their  services,  on  the  Gov- 
ernment expressing  a  wish  that  two  foreigners  should 
accompany  the  party.  Dr.  Barth  was  a  professor  in 
Germany  who  had  attracted  the  notice  of  Lord  Palmer- 
ston  by  his  success  in  exploring  the  northern  shores 
of  Africa ;  while  Dr.  Overweg  was  a  brave  and  ener- 
getic young  fellow,  thirty  years  of  age. 

The  travellers  started  from  Tripoli  on  the  29th 
March  1850.  The  journey  was  one  of  special  interest, 
and  there  was  a  large  gathering  of  friends  to  bid  Mr. 
Richardson  and  his  companions  "God  speed."    Although 


268  DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS. 

the  discoveries  of  previous  travellers  had  shorn  the 
adventure  of  much  of  its  danger  and  mystery,  sufficient 
peril  remained  to  make  parting  friends  feel  that  they 
might  be  looking  on  one  another's  faces  for  the  last 
time.  Such  forebodings  were  sadly  fulfilled,  for  before 
the  small  company  reached  Kukawa,  its  leader,  Mr. 
Richardson,  fell  ill  and  died.  Dr.  Barth,  who  was 
appointed  to  the  command,  and  Dr.  Overweg  then 
separated  for  a  time,  exploring  in  different  directions. 
When  Barth  returned  to  Kukawa,  he  found  his  friend 
ill  and  exhausted.  Within  a  week,  Overweg  too  was 
gone,  and  Barth  was  left  to  explore  alone  the  almost 
unknown  regions  of  West  Central  Africa — to  pene- 
trate, if  possible,  the  country  as  far  as  Timbuctoo,  enter 
into  treaty  with  the  Sultan  of  Sokoto,  and  procure 
admission  for  European  trade  to  this  part  of  the  Dark 
Continent.  Some  idea  of  the  measure  of  success  which 
he  achieved  may  be  gathered  from  the  brief  analysis 
of  Barth's  large  volumes  contained  in  the  following 
pages. 

On  the  death  of  his  fellow-traveller,  Mr.  Overweg, 
Dr.  Barth  gave  up  his  original  plan  of  again  trying 
his  fortune  in  Kanem  and  on  the  north-east  shores  of 
the  Tchad,  and  resolved  to  turn  westwards  and  explore 
the  countries  on  the  middle  course  of  the  great  river 
of  the  west,  the  I'sa  or  so-called  Niger.  He  fixed  upon 
Say,  a  town  on  the  Niger  somewhat  south-east  of 
Timbuctoo,  as  his  first  halting-place  ;  but  the  main 


DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS.  269 

object  of  the  expedition  was  to  reach  the  town  of 
Timbuctoo  itself,  a  place  attractive  from  the  mystery 
by  which  it  was  surrounded. 

It  was  on  the  26th  of  November  1852  that  Dr. 
Barth  set  out  from  Kukawa,  which  had  been  his  head- 
quarters for  more  than  twenty  months.  His  little  com- 
pany consisted  of  an  Arab  sherif  from  Fez,  who  was 
going  as  far  as  Zinder,  an  interpreter  from  Jalo,  five 
Mussulman  freemen,  and  two  liberated  slaves,  Dyrregu, 
a  Houssa  boy,  and  Abbega,  a  Marghi  lad.  Of  Abbega 
Dr.  Barth  remarks  :  "  He  not  unfrequently  found  some 
other  object  more  interesting  than  my  camels,  which 
were  intrusted  to  his  care,  and  which  in  consequence 
he  lost  repeatedly." 

The  travellers  had  set  out  in  the  cool  season  of  the 
African  year,  when,  even  in  tropical  Africa,  in  parts 
remote  from  the  sea,  that  great  equalizer  of  tempera- 
ture, the  nights  are  often  positively  cold.  So  to  the 
delight  of  the  travellers  in  once  more  finding  them- 
selves in  the  open  country  was  added  the  enjoyment 
of  a  pleasant  change  of  temperature,  and  also  of  scenery, 
as  they  exchanged  the  bleak  and  dreary  hollows  that 
lie  between  Kano  and  Kukawa  for  rich  fields  waving 
with  corn  and  fine  crops  of  marakuwa  and  stubble- 
fields  of  small  millet.  These  pleasant  changes,  and 
the  prospect  of  further  novelty  in  the  unknown  regions 
of  the  far  west,  kept  the  travellers  in  the  best  of 
spirits. 


270  DR.  BABTH'S  TRAVELS. 

By  the  1st  of  December,  Dr.  Barth  reached  the 
Komadugu,  the  river-valley  of  Bornou.  Eecent  rains 
had  made  the  passage  of  this  swampy  network  of 
channels  and  thick  forests  a  most  difficult  task ;  but 
the  travellers  were  encouraged  by  the  sight  of  fine 
groups  of  trees  and  droves  of  guinea-fowl  which  now 
varied  the  scene.  After  visiting  the  site  of  Ghasr- 
eggomo,  the  old  capital  of  Bornou,  the  travellers  had 
to  make  a  roundabout  journey  to  reach  the  village  of 
Ze'ngiri,  where  the  river  could  be  most  easily  forded. 
Having  crossed  the  river,  they  entered  the  province 
of  Manga,  where  some  of  the  thievish  natives  robbed 
the  Arab  merchant  in  the  most  daring  manner  of  his 
woollen  blanket,  dragging  the  poor  fellow  along  in  it 
until  they  forced  him  to  let  go.  Passing  through 
the  walled  town  of  Gesma,  and  places  with  such 
pleasant  names  as  the  "  Queen  of  the  Kegion  of  the 
Dum  Palm,"  and  the  "  Sweetness  of  the  World,"  they 
soon  found  themselves  in  the  hilly  district  of  Muniyo. 
There  they  were  joined  by  parties  of  native  traders, 
bearing  their  wares  on  their  heads,  as  the  British  pedlar 
carries  his  on  his  back.  The  wooded  hills,  the  many 
salt  and  fresh  water  lakes,  the  towns  and  villages, 
and  cultivated  land  and  pleasant  pastures,  with  their 
herds  of  camels,  horses,  goats,  sheep,  and  cattle,  made 
the  passage  through  Muniyo  a  very  pleasant  part  of 
the  journey.  At  one  of  the  towns  where  they  stopped 
to  water    the    animals    the  wells  were   ten   fathoms 


DR.   BARTH' S  TRAVELS.  271 

deep ;  and  crowds  of  boys  and  girls  were  busy  draw- 
ing water  from  two  other  larger  wells  on  the  north 
side  of  the  place.  The  path  was  also  frequented  by 
numbers  of  people  who  were  carrying  the  harvest  into 
the  town  in  nets  made  from  the  leaves  of  the  dum 
palm,  and  borne  on  the  backs  of  oxen. 

While  passing  through  Muniyo,  Dr.  Barth,  with  two 
of  his  companions,  visited  a  natron  lake  situated  at  the 
foot  of  a  hill  near  a  village  called  Magajiri.  Dr.  Barth 
writes  :  "  When  we  had  passed  this  village,  which  was 
full  of  natron  (carbonate  of  soda),  stored  up  partly  in 
large  piles  into  '  takrufa '  or  matting  coverings,  we  ob- 
tained a  view  of  the  natron  lake  lying  before  us  in  the 
hollow  at  the  foot  of  the  rocky  eminence,  with  its  snow- 
white  surface  girt  all  round  by  a  green  border  of  luxu- 
riant vegetation.  This  border  of  vegetation  was  formed 
by  well-kept  cotton  grounds,  which  were  just  in  flower, 
and  by  kitchen  gardens,  where  deraba  was  grown,  the 
cultivated  ground  being  broken  by  dum  bush  and 
rank  grass.  Crossing  this  verdant  and  fertile  strip, 
we  reached  the  real  natron  lake,  where  we  hesitated 
some  time  whether  or  not  we  should  venture  upon  its 
surface ;  for  the  crust  of  natron  was  scarcely  an  inch 
thick,  the  whole  of  the  ground  underneath  consisting 
of  black  boggy  soil,  from  which  the  substance  separates 
continually  afresh."  At  the  end  of  the  rainy  season  the 
natron  is  obtained  in  larger  pieces  than  at  other  times. 
"A  large  provision  of  natron,  consisting  of  from  twenty 


272  DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS. 

to  twenty-five  piles  about  ten  yards  in  diameter  and 
four  in  height,  protected  by  a  layer  of  reeds,  was  stored 
up  at  the  northern  end  of  the  lake.  The  whole  cir- 
cumference of  the  basin  was  one  mile  and  a  half." 

On  Christmas  day  1852,  the  travellers  reached 
Zinder,  a  busy  trading  mart  (Dr.  Barth  calls  it  "  the 
gate  of  Soudan  "),  where  they  were  to  wait  for  new 
supplies.  When  these  arrived,  on  the  20th  of  January, 
part  of  them  was  used  to  purchase  from  the  natives 
such  wares  as  red  bernouses,  turbans,  looking-glasses, 
razors,  chaplets,  and  gloves.  Further  on,  at  Katsena, 
other  purchases  were  made  of  cotton  and  silk  goods 
made  at  Kano  (the  "  Manchester  of  Africa  ")  and  Ntipe, 
also  of  leather  water-skins  for  covering  luggage;  "for," 
says  Dr.  Barth,  "  no  place  in  the  whole  of  Negroland  is 
so  famous  for  excellent  leather  and  the  art  of  tanning 
as  Katsena :  and  if  I  had  taken  a  larger  supply  of 
these  articles  with  me,  it  would  have  been  very  pro- 
fitable ;  but  of  course  these  leather  articles  require  a 
great  deal  of  room."  Among  other  purchases  were 
two  hundred  and  thirty-two  black  shawls  for  covering 
the  face  (these  are  the  best  presents  for  the  Tawarek), 
seventy -five  turkedis,  and  some  of  the  tobacco  of 
Katsena,  which  is  held  in  great  estimation  even  in 
Timbuctoo.  So  provided,  Dr.  Barth  knew  he  could 
pass  safely  through  the  countries  on  the  middle  course 
of  the  Niger,  for  these  native  manufactures  are  there 
everywhere  a  ready  passport. 


DR.  BAETH'S  TRAVELS.  273 

Leaving  K&tsena,  the  travellers  had  to  make  a  wide 
circuit  on  account  of  a  hostile  army  known  to  be  on 
the  road.  By  keeping  a  good  look-out,  however,  by 
marching  at  night,  and  sometimes  by  showing  a  bold 
front,  or  diving  into  the  forests,  they  arrived,  some- 
what alarmed  but  uninjured,  at  Sokoto,  the  capital  of 
the  Fulbe  or  Fellani,  the  most  intelligent  of  all  the 
African  tribes.  Though  a  small  town,  Sokoto  can 
boast  some  five  thousand  inhabitants.  It  is  a  place 
of  resort  for  numbers  of  the  gray  species  of  monkey. 
While  there,  Dr.  Barth  visited  the  house  in  which 
the  traveller  Clapperton  died,  and  obtained  some  in- 
teresting information  about  the  unfortunate  captain's 
death.     The  market  at  Sokoto  is  thus  described : — 

"  Even  in  the  present  reduced  condition  of  the  place, 
the  market  still  presented  a  very  interesting  sight,  the 
numerous  groups  of  people,  buyers  as  well  as  sellers, 
and  the  animals  of  various  descriptions,  being  pictur- 
esquely scattered  over  the  rocky  slope.  The  market 
was  tolerably  well  attended  and  well  supplied,  there 
being  about  thirty  horses,  three  hundred  head  of  cattle 
for  slaughter,  fifty  oxen  of  burden,  and  a  great  quantity 
of  leather  articles,  especially  leather  bags,  cushions, 
and  similar  articles,  the  leather  dressed  and  prepared 
here  being  very  soft  and  beautiful.  A  good  many 
slaves  were  exhibited,  and  fetched  a  higher  price  than 
might  be  supposed — a  lad  of  very  indifferent  appear- 
ance being  sold  for  thirty-three  thousand  shells.      I 

(94)  18 


274  DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS. 

myself  bought  a  pony  for  thirty  thousand  shells.  It 
being  just  about  the  time  when  the  salt  caravan  visits 
these  parts,  dates  also,  which  usually  form  a  small 
addition  to  the  principal  merchandise  of  those  traders 
of  the  desert,  were  to  be  had ;  and  I  filled  a  leather 
bag  for  some  two  thousand  shells,  in  order  to  give  a 
little  more  variety  to  my  food  on  the  long  road  which 
lay  before  me." 

Much  rice  is  grown  near  Sokoto,  one  whole  valley 
forming  an  uninterrupted  rice-field. 

From  Sokoto,  the  way  of  our  travellers  led  to  almost 
unknown  regions,  hitherto  untrodden  by  European 
foot.  As  usual,  the  road  lay  through  densely-peopled 
districts,  where  yams  and  corn-fields  flourished.  On 
some  occasions  Dr.  Barth  seems  to  have  found  the 
presents  with  which  he  had  provided  himself  extremely 
useful.  Such  was  the  case  with  the  sultan  Aliyu, 
whom  Dr.  Barth  visited  to  compliment  the  chief  on 
his  return  from  subduing  some  wretched  little  hamlets. 
"  Although,"  he  says,  "  I  had  made  the  chief  a  very 
respectable  present  on  my  first  arrival,  I  thought  it 
well  to  give  greater  impulse  to  his  friendly  disposition 
towards  me  by  adding  something  also  this  time,  pre- 
senting him  with  a  cloth  waistcoat  and  several  smaller 
articles,  besides  a  musical  box,  with  the  performance 
of  which  he  was  extremely  pleased.  But  unfortunately 
when,  anxious  to  impart  his  delight  to  his  greatest 
friend  and  principal  minister,  he  had  called  the  latter 


DB.  BABTH'S  TBAVELS.  277 

to  witness  this  wonder,  the  mysterious  box,  affected 
by  the  change  of  climate  and  the  jolting  of  the  long 
journey,  was  silent  for  a  moment,  and  would  not  play. 
I  may  observe  here  that  I  think  it  better  for  travellers 
not  to  make  such  presents  as  musical  boxes,  which  so 
easily  get  out  of  order. 

"  Having  made  a  present  to  the  ghaladima  also,  I 
thought  it  better,  in  order  to  make  up  for  the  deficiency 
of  the  musical  box,  to  satisfy  the  musical  taste  of  the 
sultan  by  making  him  a  present  of  one  of  the  harmonica 
which  the  Chevalier  Bunsen  (in  consideration  of  the 
great  effect  which  a  missionary  had  produced  with  the 
aid  of  such  an  instrument  on  the  inhabitants  of  the 
shores  of  the  Nile)  had  procured  for  me ;  but  I  suc- 
ceeded afterwards  in  repairing,  in  some  measure,  the 
musical  box,  which  caused  the  good-natured  chief  in- 
expressible delight,  so  that  he  lost  no  time  in  writing 
for  me  a  commendatory  letter  to  his  nephew,  Khalilu, 
the  chief  of  Gandu." 

Passing  through  country  which  became  more  and 
more  unsafe,  Dr.  Barth  arrived  at  Gandu  on  the  17th 
of  May.  The  Fulbe  prince,  Khalilu,  was  well  known 
for  his  intense  dislike  to  Europeans  and  all  Christians. 
An  Arab  who  had  gained  influence  at  the  sultan's 
court,  however,  managed  a  peaceful  arrangement  be- 
tween the  traveller  and  the  chieftain,  and  no  doubt 
the  letter  from  the  gratified  owner  of  the  musical  box 
was  not  without  effect ;  but  it  was  only  after  some 


278  DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS. 

trouble  and  delay,  and  the  sacrifice  of  many  of  his 
stores,  that  Dr.  Barth  was  allowed,  on  the  4  th  of 
June,  to  proceed  on  his  journey,  which  now  promised 
to  become  of  overwhelming  interest  as  they  neared 
the  great  African  river,  the  object  of  their  ambition. 

The  interest  grew  daily  greater,  though,  owing  to 
the  heavy  rains  of  that  time  of  the  year,  their  progress 
was  but  slow,  and,  owing  to  the  unsafe  state  of  the 
country,  somewhat  dangerous.  One  town  had  just 
been  destroyed  by  the  enemy,  and  all  the  inhabitants 
carried  into  slavery.  "  The  aspect  of  the  place  was 
doleful  and  melancholy  in  the  extreme,  corresponding- 
well  with  the  dangerous  situation  in  which  we  found 
ourselves ;  and  whilst  traversing  the  half -ruined  vil- 
lage, which  from  a  bustling  little  place  had  become 
the  abode  of  death,  I  almost  involuntarily  snatched 
my  gun  and  held  it  steadily  in  my  hand.  But  life 
and  death  in  these  regions  are  closely  allied ;  and  we 
had  scarcely  left  the  ruined  village  behind  us,  when 
we  were  greeted  by  a  most  luxuriant  rice-field,  where 
the  crops  were  already  almost  three  feet  high,  and 
girt  by  the  finest  border  of  a  nice  variety  of  shady 
trees,  overtopped  by  a  number  of  tall  deleb  palms,  the 
golden  fruit  of  which,  half  ripe,  was  starting  forth 
from  under  the  feathery  foliage.  But  our  attention 
was  soon  diverted  from  the  enjoyment  of  this  scenery 
to  a  point  of  greater  interest  to  ourselves.  We  here 
observed  a  solitary  individual,  in  spite  of  the  unsafe 


DR.  BABTH'S  TRAVELS.  279 

state  of  the  country,  sitting  quietly  at  the  foot  of  one 
of  the  palm  trees,  and  seemingly  enjoying  its  fruit. 
Now,  coupling  the  present  state  of  the  country  with 
the  news  we  had  just  received,  we  could  not  help 
greatly  suspecting  this  man  to  be  a  spy,  posted  here 
by  the  enemy  in  order  to  give  them  information  of 
the  passers-by ;  and  I  had  the  greatest  difficulty  in 
preventing  my  Arab,  who,  when  there  was  no  dan- 
ger for  himself,  always  mustered  a  great  amount 
of  courage,  from  shooting  this  suspicious  -  looking 
character." 

Proceeding  further  through  this  rich  but  unsafe 
district,  the  travellers,  to  their  great  delight,  met  a 
solitary  and  courageous  pilgrim — a  Jolof,  from  the 
shores  of  the  Atlantic — carrying  his  little  luggage  on 
his  head,  and  seemingly  well  prepared  to  defend  it 
with  his  double-barrelled  gun  which  he  carried  on  his 
shoulder,  and  a  short  sword  hanging  at  his  side,  while 
his  shirt  was  tossed  gallantly  up  and  tied  over  his 
shoulder  behind  the  neck.  "  In  my  joy  at  the  sight 
of  this  enterprising  native  traveller,"  says  Dr.  Barth, 
"  I  could  not  forbear  making  him  a  small  present,  in 
order  to  assist  him  in  his  arduous  undertaking." 

At  the  strong  walled  town  of  Kola,  which  com- 
mands the  whole  passage  of  the  great  valley  of  Kebbi, 
the  company  made  a  short  halt  to  insure  peace  with 
the  powerful  governor  of  the  place,  who  was  said  to 
command  as  many  as  seventy  musketeers.      Having 


280  DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS. 

made  him  a  small  present,  they  were  hospitably  re- 
ceived both  by  the  governor  and  his  sister,  the  latter 
showing  her  favour  by  the  gift  of  a  goose — a  most 
welcome  present  to  a  European  somewhat  tired  of  the 
usual  African  fare. 

At  the  border  of  the  valley  were  some  fine  pasture 
grounds,  where  some  horses  were  grazing ;  but  the 
herbage  was  full  of  small  venomous  snakes,  which 
repeatedly  crossed  the  path  of  the  travellers  in  large 
numbers. 

But  soon  they  left  the  cultivated  grounds  and 
entered  a  dense  forest,  which  had  a  very  pleasant 
appearance,  all  the  trees  being  in  blossom,  and  spread- 
ing a  delightful  fragrance  around.  There,  too,  they 
were  agreeably  surprised  to  come  upon  two  extensive 
ponds,  which  supplied  them  with  delicious  water 
(though  on  their  return  journey,  in  August  1854, 
they  were  equally  but  disagreeably  surprised  to  find 
the  water  of  these  same  ponds  had  so  changed  as  to 
almost  poison  the  whole  company).  The  travellers 
pitched  their  tent  in  the  midst  of  the  forest,  Dr. 
Barth  greatly  enjoying  the  open  encampment  again, 
after  the  dirty  huts  in  which  he  had  lately  been 
obliged  to  live.  However,  they  had  to  enjoy  this 
wild  encampment  longer  than  they  wished,  as  one  of 
the  camels  was  lost  in  the  desert,  and  must  be  found 
before  they  could  proceed.  This  experience  gained 
for   Dr.    Barth   the    fame   among   the   people   of  the 


DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS.  281 

neighbourhood  of  being  the  only  man  who  had  spent 
a  day  in  the  unsafe  wilderness. 

Pushing  on  up  the  fertile  though  wretched  valley 
of  the  Fogha,  with  its  numerous  salt-lakes,  its  fields 
of  yams  and  tobacco,  and  herds  of  elephants,  through 
dense  forests  and  fields  where  fresh  crops  were  just 
shooting  up,  through  swampy  ground  covered  with 
rank  grass,  Dr.  Barth  and  his  companions  reached 
Songhay,  a  farming  village,  full  of  corn-stacks,  and 
inhabited  by  serfs.  All  the  huts  in  these  Songhay 
villages  consist  merely  of  reeds ;  and  while  they  are 
less  solid  than  the  clay  dwellings  of  the  Kebbi,  they 
are  better  ventilated  and  have  a  less  offensive  smell. 
Here  they  found  a  jovial  old  farmer,  who  not  only 
supplied  the  travellers  with  milk  and  corn,  but  even 
made  Dr.  Barth  the  present  of  a  sheep. 

A  period  of  great  drought  now  set  in,  and  owing 
to  the  heat  and  the  weak  condition  of  his  camels,  Dr. 
Barth  had  to  be  content  with  short  marches  through 
parched  and  uncultivated  ground,  then  for  a  short 
distance  through  country  partly  laid  out  in  fields, 
partly  covered  with  underwood,  until  at  length  they 
reached  a  village  where  they  could  quarter,  though 
not  until  they  had  used  force  to  obtain  a  hut  for 
their  use — the  head  man  of  the  village  being  too  lazy, 
or  too  obstinate,  to  leave  his  cool  shed  in  the  heat  of 
the  day. 

"We  were  now,"  Dr.  Barth  writes,  "close  to  the 


282  DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS. 

Niger ;  and  I  was  justified  in  indulging  in  the  hope 
that  I  might  the  next  day  behold  with  my  own  eyes 
that  great  river  of  Western  Africa,  which  has  caused 
such  intense  curiosity  in  Europe,  and  the  upper  part  of 
the  large  eastern  branch  of  which  I  had  myself  dis- 
covered." 

These  expectations  were  soon  fulfilled,  for  next  day, 
Monday,  June  20th  (our  Queen's  accession  day),  Dr. 
Barth  sighted  the  Niger. 

"  Next  morning,"  he  writes,  "  at  an  early  hour,  I 
set  out ;  and  after  a  march  of  a  little  less  than  two 
hours,  through  a  roeky  wilderness  covered  with  dense 
bushes,  I  obtained  the  first  sight  of  the  river ;  and  in 
less  than  an  hour  more,  during  which  I  was  in  con- 
stant sight  of  this  noble  spectacle,  I  reached  the  place 
of  embarkation  opposite  the  town  of  Say. 

"  In  a  noble,  unbroken  stream,  though  here,  where 
it  has  become  contracted,  only  about  seven  hundred 
yards  broad,  hemmed  in  on  this  side  by  a  rocky  bank 
of  from  twenty  to  thirty  feet  in  elevation,  the  great 
river  of  Western  Africa  (whose  name  under  all  its 
many  forms  means  nothing  but  '  the  river,'  and 
which  therefore  may  well  continue  to  be  called  the 
Niger)  was  gliding  along  in  a  north-easterly  and 
south-westerly  direction,  with  a  moderate  current  of 
about  three  miles  an  hour.  On  the  flatter  shore 
opposite,  a  large  town  was  spreading  out,  the  low 
ramparts  and  huts  of  which  were  picturesquely  over- 


DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS.  285 

topped  by  numbers  of  slender  dum  palms.  This  was 
the  river-town  or  '  ford/ — the  name  Say  meaning,  in 
this  eastern  dialect,  'the  river.'  The  banks  at  pres- 
ent were  not  high ;  but  the  river,  as  it  rises,  ap- 
proaches the  very  border  of  the  rocky  slope." 

While  waiting  for  the  boats  which  were  to  carry 
them  across  the  river,  the  travellers  had  plenty  of 
leisure  for  observing  the  river  scenery,  and  the  pas- 
sengers crossing  in  the  smaller  boats,  Fulbe  and 
Songhay  natives,  with  asses  and  pack-oxen.  At 
length  the  boats,  or  rather  canoes,  which  were  to 
carry  Dr.  Barth's  company  and  their  effects  across, 
made  their  appearance.  "  They  were  of  good  size, 
about  forty  feet  in  length,  and  from  four  to  five  feet 
in  width  in  the  middle,  consisting  of  two  trunks  of 
trees  hollowed  out  and  sewn  together  in  the  middle. 
These  boats  are  chiefly  used  for  carrying  corn  from 
Sinder,  a  town  higher  up  the  river,  to  Say ;  and  they 
had  been  expressly  sent  for  by  the  '  king  of  the 
waters,'  as  the  inspector  of  the  harbour  is  called. 
The  largest  of  them  was  able  to  carry  three  of  my 
camels ;  and  the  water  was  kept  out  much  better 
than  I  had  ever  yet  found  to  be  the  case  with  the 
native  craft  of  the  inhabitants  of  Negroland. 

"  My  camels,  horses,  people,  and  luggage  having 
crossed  over  without  accident,  I  myself  followed 
about  one  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  filled  with  delight 
when  floating  on  the  waters  of  this  celebrated  stream, 


286  DR.  BARTH' S  TRAVELS. 

the  exploration  of  which  had  cost  the  sacrifice  of  so 
many  noble  lives." 

To  Dr.  Barth  the  sight  of  the  river  was  of  the 
more  importance,  because  he  was  so  soon  again  to 
leave  it  and  proceed  by  land  to  Timbuctoo — that 
being  the  only  route  so  far  as  he  then  knew ;  and  he 
had  only  a  faint  hope  of  revisiting  the  river  between 
Timbuctoo  and  Say.  In  doubt  of  ever  being  able 
to  reach  the  western  coast,  our  traveller  thought  it 
more  interesting  to  survey  the  course  of  the  Niger 
between  the  point  already  explored  by  Mungo  Park 
and  the  lower  portion  known  through  the  accounts 
of  the  Landers,  than  to  cross  the  whole  of  Central 
Africa. 

Having  presented  himself  at  the  governor's  house, 
Dr.  Barth  soon  obtained  quarters,  though  they  were 
not  at  all  to  his  taste,  being  small  and  narrow.  The 
town,  in  its  very  low  position,  is  not  refreshed  by  a 
single  current  of  air,  and  has  a  very  oppressive  atmos- 
phere. The  huts,  too,  seemed  made  rather  for  women 
than  for  men,  the  women's  apartment  occupying  the 
greater  part  of  each.  The  bedstead,  made  of  the 
branches  of  trees,  was  enclosed  in  a  separate  chamber 
of  mats,  thus  leaving  only  a  very  small  entrance,  and 
blocking  up  the  inside  of  the  dwelling.  Dr.  Barth's 
first  task  was  to  demolish  one  of  these  small  matting 
bed-rooms  in  order  to  obtain  some  ventilation.  At 
length,  having  made  himself   somewhat  comfortable, 


DR.  BABTH'S  TBAVELS.  287 

he  began  to  long  for  some  refreshment,  having  been 
exposed  to  the  sun  during  the  hottest  part  of  the  day. 
The  governor,  however,  sent  only  stores  of  rice  and 
millet,  which  had  to  be  husked  and  cooked  before  the 
travellers  could  satisfy  their  hunger.  The  town  was 
suffering  from  want  of  rain,  and  the  air  of  the  valley, 
always  oppressive,  became  almost  suffocating. 

Next  morning  Dr.  Barth  rode  round  the  town  of 
Say,  which  he  describes  as  of  quadrangular  shape, 
with  a  low  rampart  of  earth  on  three  of  its  sides,  the 
fourth,  looking  towards  the  river,  being  unprotected. 
Though  pretty  large,  the  town  is  but  thinly  inhabited, 
the  dwellings,  all  except  the  governor's,  consisting  of 
matting  and  reeds,  lying  scattered  about  like  so  many 
separate  hamlets.  It  is  divided  by  a  wide  valley 
running  from  north  to  south,  surrounded  by  dum 
palms,  which  are  almost  the  only  trees  either  inside  or 
outside  the  town.  At  the  end  of  the  rainy  season 
this  valley  becomes  filled  with  water,  stopping  the 
business  and  adding  to  the  unhealthiness  of  the  town. 
"  There  can  be  no  doubt,"  Dr.  Barth  thinks,  "  that  in 
seasons  when  the  river  reaches  an  unusual  height  the 
whole  town  is  under  water,  the  inhabitants  being 
obliged  to  seek  safety  beyond  the  borders  of  the 
valley." 

In  the  eastern  part  of  the  town,  not  far  from  the 
river,  a  market  is  held  every  day,  which,  poor  as  it  is, 
is  of  some  importance  ;  and  hence  the  town  has  a 


288  DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS. 

great  name  as  a  market-place  among  the  inhabitants 
of  Western  Soudan,  many  of  whom  here  supply  their 
want  of  native  manufactures,  especially  of  common 
clothing  for  both  men  and  women,  as  the  art  of 
weaving  and  dyeing  is  there  greatly  neglected,  and 
very  little  cotton  is  grown.  But  the  place  was  most 
miserably  supplied  with  provisions,  there  being  no 
store  of  grain  whatever.  Everything  necessary  was 
brought  day  by  day  from  the  town  called  Sinder, 
about  eighty  miles  higher  up  the  river.  To  Dr. 
Barth's  great  surprise,  not  a  grain  of  rice  is  grown 
here,  though  the  soil,  being  often  under  water,  is  par- 
ticularly suited  for  rice-growing.  Everything  at  Say 
was  very  dear,  especially  butter,  which  was  scarcely 
to  be  procured  at  all.  The  money  used  in  the  market 
consisted  of  shells.  The  high  prices  depended  on  the 
state  of  feeling  between  Say  and  Hausa,  and  it  so 
chanced  that  at  the  time  of  Dr.  Barth's  visit  that  was 
not  of  the  most  peaceful  kind. 

"  For  the  English,  or  Europeans  in  general,  Say  is," 
writes  Dr.  Barth,  "the  most  important  place  in  all 
this  tract  of  the  river,  if  only  they  succeed  in  crossing 
the  rapids  above  Rabba,  and  especially  between  Busa 
and  Yauri,  and  reach  this  fine  open  sheet  of  water, 
the  great  highroad  of  Western  Central  Africa." 

Being  now  about  to  enter  a  new  country,  where 
the  natives  spoke  a  language  which  none  of  the  com- 
pany understood,  and  not  being  able  to  give  much 


DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS.  289 

time  to  its  study,  Dr.  Barth  was  very  anxious  to 
obtain  the  services  of  a  native  of  the  country,  or  to 
liberate  a  Songhay  slave ;  but  he  did  not  succeed  at 
the  time,  and  so  did  not  feel  so  much  at  home  in  the 
countries  through  which  he  now  had  to  pass. 

As  he  left  the  great  river  behind,  Dr.  Barth's 
thoughts  turned  with  intense  interest  to  the  new  and 
unexplored  region  before  him.  However,  on  the  very 
first  day  of  their  march  (June  24th)  the  travellers 
had  a  sufficient  specimen  of  what  awaited  them 
during  the  rainy  season.  They  had  scarcely  left  the 
low  island  behind  on  which  the  town  of  Say,  that 
hot-bed  of  fever,  is  situated,  and  ascended  the  steep 
rocky  bank  which  borders  the  west  side  of  the  river, 
when  a  dark  array  of  thunder-clouds  came,  as  it  were, 
marching  on  them  from  the  south-east,  and  a  terrible 
thunderstorm  suddenly  broke  out,  beginning  with  a 
most  fearful  sand- wind,  which  wrapped  the  whole 
district  in  the  darkness  of  night,  and  made  progress 
for  a  moment  quite  impossible.  After  a  while  it  was 
followed  by  a  violent  rain,  which  relieved  the  sand- 
storm, but  lasted  for  nearly  three  hours,  filling  the 
path  with  water  to  the  depth  of  several  inches,  and 
soaking  the  unfortunate  explorers  through  to  the  skin, 
making  the  rest  of  their  march  very  uncomfortable. 
They  at  last  found  shelter  in  a  farming  hamlet,  where 
the  people  were  busily  employed  in  sowing,  the 
plentiful  rain,  which  was  the  first  of  the  season,  having 

(94)  19 


290  DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS. 

rendered  the  fields  fit  for  cultivation.  The  proprietor, 
a  cheerful  and  wealthy  old  man,  lodged  the  company 
comfortably  in  two  round  huts  near  a  sheep-pen  in  front 
of  his  dwelling.  While  his  people  were  drying  them- 
selves and  their  luggage,  Dr.  Barth  roved  about  a  little, 
watching  the  women  washing  their  clothes  in  pools  of 
stagnant  water  and  the  slaves  busy  working  in  the 
fields. 

Their  way  at  first  lay  through  hilly  country,  some- 
times varied  by  pleasant  vales  or  glens,  though  in 
general  they  were  treeless  and  thinly  inhabited.  After 
a  short  march  they  reached  the  highest  point,  from 
which  they  could  view  an  extensive  wilderness,  with 
only  a  few  cultivated  spots  hidden  in  the  forest. 
Passing  through  some  picturesque  but  not  very  fertile 
regions,  they  arrived  at  the  town  of  Champagore,  a 
town  enclosed  by  hills,  and  remarkable  for  its  maga- 
zines of  corn,  which  consist  of  towers  or  square  build- 
ings, raised  a  few  feet  above  the  ground,  in  order  to 
protect  them  from  the  ants.  They  have  no  opening 
at  the  bottom,  but  only  a  kind  of  window  near  the 
top,  through  which  the  corn  is  taken  in  and  out ;  and 
on  the  whole  they  are  not  unlike  the  dove-cots  of 
Egypt.  These  magazines,  one  or  two  of  which  are  to 
be  seen  in  every  courtyard,  far  surpass  in  their  ap- 
pearance the  dwellings  themselves,  which  are  nearly 
all  low  huts,  enclosed  by  a  frail  fence  made  of  the 
stalks  of  the  native  corn. 


DR.  BARTH 'S  TRAVELS.  291 

Before  leaving  this  place  Dr.  Barth  visited  the 
chief.  The  portal  of  the  residence  was  very  stately ; 
but  the  spacious  courtyard  inside,  which  was  enclosed 
by  a  low  clay  wall,  full  of  rubbish,  and  poor,  mean- 
looking  huts,  did  not  correspond  with  the  stately 
entrance.  However,  the  dwelling  itself,  although 
simple,  was  not  mean,  and,  besides  two  spacious  clay 
halls,  included  some  very  airy  and  cool  corridors  built 
entirely  of  wood.  Having  been  first  received  in  one 
of  the  clay  halls  by  the  chief,  a  very  pleasant-looking 
man  of  middle  height,  about  seventy  years  of  age,  in 
a  simple  light-blue  tobe,  with  a  white  shawl  wound 
round  his  face,  Dr.  Barth  was  conducted  afterwards  to 
one  of  the  corridors  for  a  more  private  audience,  and 
there  delivered  his  present — a  red  cap,  half  a  piece  of 
muslin,  and  other  smaller  articles. 

This  old  chief,  Galaijo,  had  received  a  large  though 
not  very  fertile  district  from  the  chief  of  Gandu ;  and 
so  the  travellers  found  here  a  small  court  and  a  people 
bearing  no  resemblance  whatever  to  those  around 
them,  having  faithfully  preserved  the  manners  and 
institutions  of  their  native  country.  While  all  the 
neighbouring  natives  are  rather  a  slender  race  of  men, 
with  fine,  sharply-cut  features,  who  make  it  a  rule  to 
dress  in  white  colours,  here  were  found  people  quite 
the  reverse — a  set  of  sturdy  men,  with  round  open 
countenances,  and  long  black  curly  hair,  all  clad  alike 
in  light-blue  tobes,  and  nearly  all  armed  with  muskets. 


292  DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS. 

Three  of  Galaijo's  servants,  all  armed  with  muskets, 
attached  themselves  to  the  company  of  travellers  ;  and 
in  case  of  any  attack  on  the  road,  were  supplied  with 
ball  cartridges,  for  the  way  now  lay  through  an  un- 
safe wilderness.  A  few  miles  from  their  starting- 
point  they  passed  some  strange  smelting-furnaces, 
about  six  feet  high,  and  measuring  a  foot  and  a  half 
across  the  base.  The  native  smelting  is  a  very  simple 
process.  On  the  ironstone  is  placed  a  large  quantity 
of  wood-ashes.  When  the  metal  begins  to  melt,  it 
is  received,  by  three  channels  at  the  bottom  of  the 
furnace,  into  a  little  trough  or  basin.  Soon  after  this 
they  came  upon  numerous  footprints  of  the  elephant, 
and  traces  of  the  rhinoceros.  Monkey-bread  trees 
were  here  seen  in  great  abundance. 

One  day  their  progress  was  stopped  by  the  sudden 
bend  of  a  river,  about  seventy  yards  wide,  which  they 
were  to  cross  merely  on  bundles  of  reeds  that  they 
were  themselves  to  tie  together.  At  length,  after 
much  bargaining,  some  natives  agreed  to  assist  the 
travellers  in  crossing.  While  the  large  bundles  of  the 
frail  ferry  were  being  tied  together,  the  head  man  of 
the  village  and  many  of  the  natives  watched  the 
operation  from  the  high  banks.  The  men  formed 
interesting  groups,  with  their  short  shirts  and  wide 
trowsers  of  light  blue,  and  their  short  pipes  in  their 
mouths,  for  they  smoked  incessantly.  Their  features, 
though  effeminate,  were  full  of  expression,  their  hair 


DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS.  293 

plaited  in  long  tresses  and  hanging  over  their  cheeks, 
sometimes  even  to  their  shoulders.  The  women  were 
short  of  stature  and  unshapely,  and  had  their  necks 
and  ears  richly  ornamented  with  strings  of  beads,  but 
none  of  them  wore  the  nose-ring.  The  men  were 
clever  swimmers,  and  carried  the  small  luggage  across 
the  river  in  calabashes ;  but  it  took  two  hours  to  con- 
vey the  whole  party  and  their  luggage  safely  to  the 
other  side. 

Continuing  their  march  through  the  forest,  they 
found  numerous  footprints  of  the  elephant  and  the 
buffalo,  and  ere  long  fell  in  with  a  large  herd  of  the 
latter  cropping  the  luxuriant  grass  of  the  pasture 
grounds.  In  the  province  of  Yagha,  through  which 
they  were  now  passing,  they  found  the  natives  busily 
occupied,  some  in  weaving  on  sticks  hung  from  the 
roof,  others  in  basket-making  and  leather-work.  At 
one  of  these  huts  Dr.  Barth  put  up  for  a  night,  and 
writes  of  it  thus  : — 

"  The  clay  being  excellently  polished,  and  the  hut 
of  recent  construction,  left  a  very  pleasant  impression; 
but,  as  is  often  the  case  in  human  life,  all  this  finery 
covered  nothing  but  misery,  and  I  discovered  the  next 
day,  to  my  utter  amazement,  that  this  beautiful  hut 
was  one  entire  nest  of  ants,  which  had  in  one  day 
made  great  havoc  with  the  whole  of  my  luggage." 

As  he  passed  on,  more  serious  dangers  threatened 
our  brave  explorer,   from  the  hatred  of  the  natives 


294  DR.  BARTH 'S  TRAVELS. 

against  all  Christians,  or,  as  they  called  them,  infidels, 
and  their  suspicions  of  Dr.  Barth.  On  one  occasion, 
indeed,  he  only  narrowly  escaped  death  by  adopting 
the  advice  of  an  Arab,  and  representing  himself  as  an 
officer  carrying  books  to  the  sheik.  The  plan  suc- 
ceeded ;  for  the  large  company  of  furious  half -naked 
men,  brandishing  their  weapons  over  their  heads  in  a 
most  threatening  manner,  "all  of  a  sudden  dropped 
their  spears  and  thronged  round  me,"  Dr.  Barth  says, 
"requesting  me  to  give  them  my  blessing;  and  the 
circumstances  under  which  I  was  placed  obliged  me 
to  comply  with  this  slight  request,  although  it  was  by 
no  means  a  pleasant  matter  to  lay  my  hands  on  all 
those  dirty  heads." 

These  same  people  proved  in  the  end  most  useful. 
Having  received  his  blessing,  they  conducted  the 
traveller  to  a  place  where  they  declared  the  water  to 
be  fordable.  The  ground,  however,  even  here  proved 
boggy,  and  the  luggage  had  to  be  carried  across  by 
the  people,  the  camels  nearly  sticking  in  the  bog,  even 
though  unloaded  ;  while  Dr.  Barth,  being  persuaded  by 
the  natives  that  his  dignity  in  presence  of  the  native 
travellers  absolutely  required  him  to  remain  on  horse- 
back, fell  under  his  horse  in  the  middle  of  the  swamp. 
His  journals  got  wet  through,  and  they  had  the 
greatest  difficulty  in  extricating  the  poor  horse  from 
the  bog. 

On  his  passage  through   the  district  of  Aribinda 


DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS.  295 

(that  is,  "the  place  beyond  or  south  of  the  water"), 
Dr.  Barth's  luggage  suffered  somewhat  from  the  many 
water-courses  which  he  had  to  cross,  and  the  greed  of 
the  Arabs.  One  governor,  to  whom  he  had  already 
made  several  presents,  somewhat  astonished  our  trav- 
eller when  he  was  setting  out  by  begging  the  very 
tobe  which  he  then  was  wearing ! 

In  one  village  of  industrious  natives  Dr.  Barth 
found  some  of  his  English  goods  very  acceptable, 
especially  some  English  darning-needles,  which  fetched 
a  very  high  price,  though  the  small  common  needles 
were  regarded  with  the  utmost  contempt. 

One  of  the  most  dangerous  stages  of  the  journey 
was  that  which  lay  through  the  country  of  the 
Tawarek,  for  there  the  crafty  Arab  companion  of  Dr. 
Barth  could  take  full  advantage  of  the  European's 
dangerous  situation.  "  On  the  one  hand,"  says  Dr. 
Barth,  "  it  had  become  necessary  to  represent  me  to 
these  simple  people  as  a  great  sherif,  and  thus  to 
excite  their  hospitable  feelings,  while  at  the  same  time 
he  instigated  me  to  reward  their  treatment  in  a 
generous  manner,  but  nevertheless  sold  my  presents 
to  them  as  his  own  property !  It  required  a  great 
deal  of  patience  on  my  part  to  bear  up  against  the 
numerous  delays  in  this  part  of  our  journey,  and  to 
endure  the  many  tricks  played  upon  me  by  the  treach- 
ery of  my  companion,  in  order  to  prevent  at  least 
his  proceeding  to  open  violence." 


296  DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS. 

At  one  place,  on  the  departure  of  Dr.  Barth,  the 
whole  population,  both  men  and  women,  turned  out 
to  receive  his  blessing.  "  Among  the  women,"  Dr. 
Barth  writes,  "  I  discovered  a  few  pretty  young  girls, 
especially  one  whose  beauty  was  enhanced  by  her 
extreme  shyness  in  approaching  me ;  but  their  dress 
was  very  poor  indeed,  consisting  of  coarse  cotton 
stuff,  which  was  wrapped  round  the  body  and  brought 
down  over  the  head."  All  the  boys  of  the  same  place 
under  twelve  years  of  age  had  the  left  side  of  their 
head  entirely  shaven,  while  from  the  crop  on  the 
right  side  a  long  curl  hung  down. 

At  another  place  they  had  a  sign  that  they  were 
approaching  Timbuctoo,  in  the  anxiety  of  the  people  to 
taste  tea,  which  they  called  the  water  of  Simsim, 
from  the  celebrated  well  of  that  name  in  Mecca.  At 
another  encampment  farther  on,  the  eagerness  of  the 
women  to  obtain  tobacco  was  very  remarkable,  and 
they  pestered  the  travellers  during  great  part  of  the 
night  by  their  demands  for  the  luxury. 

On  the  27th  of  August  the  explorers  set  out  on 
their  last  journey  by  land,  in  order  to  reach  the  place 
where  they  were  to  embark  on  the  river.  At  the 
town  of  Sarayamo  they  found  a  great  many  people 
collected  to  receive  them ;  and  after  firing  a  salute 
with  their  pistols,  they  .obtained,  after  some  search, 
quarters  large  enough  to  admit  the  luggage. 

No  sooner  was  the  explorer  settled  than  he  was 


DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS.  297 

visited  by  a  number  of  the  more  important  natives, 
one  of  whom  thought  it  strange  that  the  so-called 
Syrian  chief  could  not  say  his  prayers  with  him  in 
the  courtyard.  To  allay  the  suspicions  as  to  his  re- 
ligion, Dr.  Barth  on  one  occasion  felt  himself  obliged 
to  repeat  the  opening  prayer  of  the  Koran,  concluding, 
to  the  great  amusement  and  delight  of  his  hearers, 
with  the  Arabic  .  words  meaning,  "  God  may  give 
water ;"  which  have  become  quite  a  common  compli- 
mentary phrase — perhaps  like  our  "  Good-bye  " — few 
people  thinking  of  its  original  meaning.  It  so  hap- 
pened that  on  the  following  night  a  heavy  thunder- 
storm came  on,  bringing  rain.  Next  day  the  inhabi- 
tants returned  to  beg  a  repetition  of  the  stranger's 
performance.  On  the  other  hand,  however,  a  blessing 
administered  along  with  a  strong  emetic  to  the 
governor,  who  was  setting  out  for  the  capital,  turned 
out  less  successful ;  for  though  the  governor  was  well 
received  in  the  capital,  he  was  greatly  shocked  to 
learn  that  his  blessing  was  that  of  a  Christian. 

At  the  large  island  of  Kora,  where  the  Futta 
branch  of  the  Niger  joins  the  main  stream,  the  trav- 
ellers were  able  to  embark  again  on  the  Niger.  In 
the  neighbourhood  through  which  they  had  just 
passed,  the  great  river  forms  such  a  network  of 
creeks,  backwaters,  and  channels,  as  to  spread  over 
the  whole  country.  Dr.  Barth  had  hired  a  large 
boat   from   Timbuctoo   for   the   exclusive   use   of   his 


298  DR.  BARTH' S  TRAVELS. 

party,  and  great  was  his  satisfaction  when,  on  the  1st 
of  September,  he  found  himself  floating  on  the  back- 
water which  was  to  carry  him  to  the  harbour  of 
Timbuctoo.  The  boats  were  pushed  along  by  poles, 
the  water  being  often  blocked  by  reeds  and  other 
growth,  so  that  they  seemed  to  be  sailing  over  a 
grassy  plain.  The  abundant  fish  kept  them  well 
supplied  with  fresh  food  ;  and  as  they  proceeded,  great 
lizards,  called  zangways,  basked  at  night,  while  still 
further  down  alligators  and  hippopotami  were  seen. 
Where  the  Futta  joined  the  Niger  stood  a  solitary 
group  of  trees,  "  which  appeared,"  says  Barth,  "  to 
form  the  usual  nightly  place  of  resort  for  all  the 
water-fowl  of  the  neighbourhood,  the  trunks  as  well 
as  the  branches  of  the  trees  showing  traces  of  these 
visitors." 

At  this  point  they  left  the  shore,  and  entered  the 
middle  of  the  magnificent  Niger  river,  called  here  the 
I'sa  or  Mayo  Balleo.  At  this  spot,  about  a  mile 
across,  the  magnitude  and  solemn  magnificence  of  the 
place  under  the  rising  moon  were  enhanced  by  the  sum- 
mer-lightning at  times  breaking  through  the  evening 
sky ;  and  Barth  says  his  servants  were  inspired  with 
real  awe  and  almost  fright,  "  while  we  were  squatting 
on  the  shelving  roof  of  our  frail  boat,  and  looked 
with  searching  eyes  along  the  immense  expanse  of  the 
river  in  a  north-easterly  direction,  where  the  object  of 
our  journey  was  said  to  lie." 


DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS.  299 

The  excitement  of  the  day,  or  the  previous  night's 
wetting,  brought  a  severe  attack  of  fever  on  Barth 
when  they  lay-to  at  the  town  of  Koiretago ;  but  in 
order  to  guard  his  luggage,  he  refused  to  go  on  shore 
and  sleep  on  the  fine  sandy  beach,  but  remained  on 
board  the  frail  boat. 

From  this  point,  Barth  followed  close  upon  the 
track  of  the  unfortunate  traveller  Major  Laing,  who 
had  been  assassinated  two  years  before  on  his  desper- 
ate journey  from  Timbuctoo. 

The  river  Niger  was,  where  Barth  crossed  it,  about 
three-quarters  of  a  mile  broad,  but  in  the  rainy 
season  it  lays  the  whole  country  to  a  great  distance 
under  water.  Yet,  except  for  a  few  fishing-boats,  the 
grand  river  was  tenantless.  At  one  of  the  villages  on 
this  part  of  the  river  Barth  received  the  unwelcome 
news  that  the  sheik,  El  Bakay,  on  whose  noble  and 
trustworthy  character  he  had  placed  his  hopes  of 
success,  was  away  in  Gundam. 

At  Kabara,  where  a  numerous  fleet  of  good-sized 
boats  was  lying,  Barth  was  visited  by  a  party  of 
armed  men,  horse  and  foot,  from  Timbuctoo,  most  of 
them  clad  in  light-blue  tobes,  tightly  girt  round  the 
waist  with  a  shawl,  and  short  breeches,  their  heads 
covered  with  a  pointed  straw  hat.  As  they  were 
busy  in  protecting  their  cattle  from  the  Tawarek,  they 
did  not  molest  our  traveller,  except  by  their  rude 
curiosity. 


300  DR.  BARTH' S  TRAVELS. 

Meanwhile  a  messenger  had  been  despatched  to 
Timbuctoo  to  obtain  protection  for  our  traveller,  and 
in  the  evening  Sheik  El  Bakay's  brother  arrived 
with  his  followers.  Under  the  escort  and  protection 
of  this  chieftain,  Barth  proceeded  the  next  day,  Sep- 
tember 7  th,  to  Timbuctoo. 

The  way  at  first  lay  through  a  desert  tract,  thickly 
lined  with  thorny  bushes  and  stunted  trees,  infested 
by  the  Tawarek.  This  short  road  between  the  har- 
bour and  the  town  is  so  unsafe  that  it  bears  the 
remarkable  name,  Ur-immandes  ("  he  does  not  hear "), 
because  the  cry  of  the  unfortunate  victim  cannot  be 
heard  from  either  side. 

As  they  approached  the  town,  the  travellers  were 
met  by  a  body  of  people  who  had  come  out  to  bid 
the  stranger  welcome.  "  This  was,"  says  Dr.  Barth, 
"a  very  important  moment,  as,  if  they  had  felt  the 
slightest  suspicion  with  regard  to  my  character,  they 
might  easily  have  prevented  my  entering  the  town  at 
all,  and  thus  even  endangered  my  life. 

"  I  therefore  took  the  hint  of  Alawate,  who  recom- 
mended me  to  make  a  start  in  advance  and  anticipate 
the  salute  of  these  people  who  had  come  to  meet  us ; 
and  putting  my  horse  to  a  gallop,  and  gun  in  hand,  I 
galloped  up  to  meet  them,  when  I  was  received  with 
many  salaams.  But  a  circumstance  occurred  which 
might  have  proved  fatal  not  only  to  my  enterprise, 
but  even  to  my  own  personal  safety,  as  there  was  a  man 


DR.  BABTH'S  TBAVELS.  303 

among  the  group  who  addressed  me  in  Turkish,  which 
I  had  almost  entirely  forgotten,  so  that  I  could  with 
difficulty  make  a  suitable  answer  to  his  compliment ; 
but  avoiding  further  indiscreet  questions,  I  pushed  on 
in  order  to  get  under  safe  cover. 

"  Having  then  traversed  the  rubbish  which  has 
accumulated  round  the  ruined  clay  wall  of  the  town, 
and  left  on  one  side  a  row  of  dirty  reed  huts,  which 
encompass  the  whole  of  the  place,  we  entered  the 
narrow  streets  and  lanes,  which  scarcely  allowed  two 
horses  to  proceed  abreast.  But  I  was  not  a  little 
surprised  at  the  populous  and  wealthy  character 
which  this  quarter  of  the  town  exhibited,  many  of 
the  houses  rising  to  the  height  of  two  stories.  Fol- 
lowed by  a  numerous  troop  of  people,  we  passed  the 
house  of  the  sheik,  El  Bakay,  where  I  was  desired 
to  fire  a  pistol ;  but  as  I  had  all  my  arms  loaded  with 
ball,  I  prudently  declined  to  do  so,  and  left  it  to  one 
of  my  people  to  do  honour  to  the  house  of  our  host. 
We  thus  reached  the  house  on  the  other  side  of  the 
street  which  was  destined  for  my  residence,  and  I 
was  glad  when  I  found  myself  safely  in  my  new 
quarters." 

In  Timbuctoo,  the  city  of  his  hopes,  unlooked-for 
trials  awaited  the  brave  traveller,  and  for  long  his 
life  was  endangered.  The  same  Arab  who  had  sug- 
gested that  Dr.  Barth  should  pass  as  a  Mohammedan 
proved  treacherous,  and  no  sooner  was  it  known  that 


304  DR.  BARTH' S  TRAVELS. 

he  was  an  infidel,  as  they  called  a  Christian,  than  a 
party  arose  demanding  either  his  expulsion  or  his 
death.  Probably  some  heavy  bribes  might  have  soon 
quieted  the  clamour,  but  such  means  do  not  seem  to 
have  been  tried ;  and  so  their  seven  months'  residence 
in  the  city  was  a  dangerous  and  exciting  time  for 
Barth  and  his  party. 

Although  it  had  been  arranged  that  during  the 
absence  of  the  sheik,  El  Bakay,  whose  special  guest 
Barth  was  to  be,  no  one  should  be  allowed  to  see  him, 
still  numbers  of  inquisitive  people  gained  access  to  his 
house,  to  the  annoyance  of  the  traveller,  who  was 
seriously  ill.  On  the  second  day  his  health  began  to 
improve,  however,  and  he  received  the  visits  of  several 
respectable  people. 

We  cannot  sufficiently  admire  the  courage  and 
self-reliance,  the  prudence  and  patience  and  industrious 
observation  of  our  traveller  at  this  trying  time  in 
Timbuctoo.  For  a  time  he  was  a  prisoner  in  all  but 
name.      He  writes  thus  : — 

"  I  was  not  allowed  to  stir  about,  but  was  confined 
within  the  walls  of  my  house.  In  order  to  obviate 
the  effect  of  this  want  of  exercise  as  much  as  possible, 
to  enjoy  fresh  air,  and  at  the  same  time  to  become 
familiar  with  the  principal  features  of  the  town, 
through  which  I  was  not  allowed  to  move  about  at 
pleasure,  I  ascended  as  often  as  possible  the  terrace  of 
my  house.     This  afforded  an  excellent  view  over  the 


DR.  BAETH'S  TRAVELS.  305 

northern  quarter  of  the  town.  The  style  of  the 
buildings  was  various.  I  could  see  clay  houses  of 
different  characters,  some  low  and  unseemly,  others 
rising  with  a  second  story  in  front  to  greater  elevation, 
the  whole  being  interrupted  by  a  few  round  huts  of 
matting.  The  streets  being  very  narrow,  only  little 
was  to  be  seen  of  the  intercourse  carried  on  in  them, 
with  the  exception  of  the  small  market  in  the  northern 
quarter,  which  was  exposed  to  view  on  account  of  its 
situation  on  the  slope  of  the  sand-hills  which,  in 
course  of  time,  have  accumulated  round  the  mosque. 

"  But  while  the  terrace  of  my  house  seemed  to 
make  me  well  acquainted  with  the  character  of  the 
town,  it  had  also  the  disadvantage  of  exposing  me 
fully  to  the  gaze  of  the  passers-by,  so  that  I  could 
only  slowly,  and  with  many  interruptions,  succeed  in 
making  a  sketch  of  the  scene  thus  offered  to  my  view." 

Our  traveller  made  use  of  his  leisure  time  during 
his  imprisonment  to  send  articles  into  the  market,  he 
himself  purchasing  some  calico.  In  these  peaceful 
occupations  he  was,  however,  disturbed  by  a  rumour 
that  his  enemies  were  coming  to  attack  him  in  his 
house.  Barth  suspecting  his  pretended  friends  to  be 
at  the  bottom  of  the  rumour,  treated  it  with  contempt. 
At  the  same  time  he  improved  his  position  in  the  town, 
at  least  with  the  more  intelligent  inhabitants,  by  a  skil- 
ful discussion  in  favour  of  Christianity  as  opposed  to 
Mohammedanism. 

(94)  20 


306  DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS. 

On  the  13th  of  September  our  traveller  received  a 
friendly  letter  from  El  Bakay,  to  which  he  at  once 
replied;  and  on  the  26th  the  sheik  himself  arrived 
in  Timbuctoo.  Barth,  being  still  unwell,  had  to  put 
off  receiving  the  sheik's  visit  until  the  following  day, 
when  they  had  a  long  conversation,  chiefly  concerning 
the  unfortunate  African  traveller  Major  Laing,  whose 
great  bodily  strength  and  noble  and  chivalrous  char- 
acter the  sheik  could  not  sufficiently  admire.  Soon 
after  the  interview,  Barth  sent  the  sheik  a  handsome 
present,  consisting  of  three  bernouses,  a  Turkey  carpet, 
four  tobes,  twenty  Spanish  dollars  in  silver,  three 
black  shawls,  and  other  articles,  the  whole  amounting 
to  the  value  of  about  £30.  In  thanking  Barth  for 
his  liberality,  the  sheik  stated  that  he  desired  no 
more  of  the  traveller  at  present ;  but  begged  that  on 
his  safe  return  home  Barth  should  not  forget  him,  but 
request  Her  Majesty's  Government  to  send  him  some 
good  fire-arms  and  some  Arabic  books.  This  Barth 
willingly  pledged  himself  to  do. 

On  one  occasion  the  sheik  made  Barth  fire  off  his 
six-barrelled  pistol  in  front  of  the  residence,  before  a 
numerous  company  of  people.  This  caused  great 
excitement  and  astonishment  among  the  people,  and 
exercised  a  great  influence  upon  Barth's  future  safety, 
as  it  made  them  believe  he  had  arms  all  over  his 
person,  and  could  fire  as  many  times  as  he  liked. 

On   the    1st   of    October   a   body    of    armed    men 


mm 


DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS.  309 

arrived  from  the  residence  of  the  sheik  to  whose 
nominal  sway  the  town  of  Timbuctoo  and  the  whole 
province  had  been  subjected  for  many  years.  They 
brought  with  them  an  order  to  expel  the  stranger  out 
of  the  town.  This  roused  the  spirit  of  El  Bakay,  who 
resolved  to  show  that  he  was  able  to  protect  the 
traveller,  whom  he  now  removed  for  a  short  time  to 
his  camp  without  the  town.  This  change  was  agree- 
able to  Barth.  He  had  more  liberty  and  exercise, 
better  air,  and  more  varied  scenery ;  but  his  pleasure 
was  marred  by  plots  and  intrigues.  On  the  13  th  he 
returned  to  Timbuctoo;  and  although  the  city  was 
much  disturbed  by  warfare  between  the  different 
tribes,  he  was  able  to  explore  the  place  more  carefully. 
The  stately  appearance  of  Timbuctoo  seems  to  have 
made  a  deep  impression  on  the  traveller's  mind. 

The  dangers  of  Dr.  Barth's  position  were  increasing 
daily,  and  soon  he  was  again  removed  to  the  encamp- 
ment of  El  Bakay.  In  vain  he  urged  his  protector 
to  provide  the  means  of  escape.  His  enemies  were 
not  now  confined  to  one  small  party ; — their  name 
was  legion.  Every  week  fresh  parties  kept  arriving 
with  orders  to  seize  the  stranger,  dead  or  alive.  One 
of  these  parties  actually  attacked  the  camp,  but  was 
driven  back  by  the  brave  traveller  and  his  faithful 
protectors.  In  fact,  as  Barth  says,  his  mere  presence 
in  the  city  or  its  neighbourhood  seemed  to  have  upset 
the  daily  life  of  the  whole  community.     To  add  to 


310  DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS. 

the  traveller's  misery,  he  was  the  constant  victim  of 
fever,  for  Timbuctoo  is  by  no  means  a  healthy  place. 

At  last  a  fortunate  chance  turned  the  tide  of  per- 
secution. On  the  19th  of  December  the  chief  of  the 
Berabish,  who  had  arrived  with  a  large  body  of  armed 
followers  to  take  our  traveller's  life,  fell  suddenly  sick 
and  died. 

"  His  death,"  says  Dr.  Barth,  "  made  an  extraor- 
dinary impression  upon  the  people,  as  it  was  a  well- 
known  fact  that  it  was  his  father  who  had  killed 
Major  Laing,  the  former  Christian  who  had  visited 
this  place ;  and  the  more  so,  as  it  was  generally  be- 
lieved that  I  was  Major  Laing's  son. 

"  The  people  could  not  but  think  that  there  was 
some  supernatural  connection  between  the  death  of 
this  man,  at  this  place  and  at  this  period,  and  the 
murderous  deed  perpetrated  by  his  father ;  and,  on 
the  whole,  I  cannot  but  think  that  this  event  exercised 
a  salutary  influence  upon  my  final  safety.  The 
followers  of  the  chief  of  the  Berabish  were  so  fright- 
ened, that  they  came  in  great  procession  to  the  sheik 
El  Bakay  to  beg  his  pardon  for  their  neglect,  and  to 
obtain  his  blessing;  "nay,  the  old  man  himself,"  Barth 
writes,  "a  short  time  afterwards  sent  word  that  he 
would  in  no  way  interfere  with  my  departure,  but 
wished  nothing  better  than  that  I  might  reach  home 
in  safety." 

The  river  was  at  this  time  rising  rapidly,  and  soon 


DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS.  311 

filled  the  valleys  of  this  sandy  region.  On  Christmas 
day,  1853,  the  water  entered  the  wells  round  the 
southern  part  of  the  town — an  event  which  happens 
only  about  every  third  year.  At  the  end  of  January 
the  inundation  of  the  Niger  reached  its  height.  Soon 
boats  began  to  arrive  from  other  towns,  bringing 
supplies  of  corn,  so  that  provisions  at  Timbuctoo 
became  much  cheaper. 

Of  Timbuctoo  as  a  trading  town  Dr.  Barth  says : 
"  Almost  the  whole  life  of  the  city  is  based  on  foreign 
commerce,  for  the  splendid  river  enables  the  inhabi- 
tants to  supply  all  their  wants  from  without.  Native 
corn  is  not  raised  here  in  sufficient  quantities  to  feed 
even  a  very  small  proportion  of  the  population. 

"  The  only  manufactures  of  the  city,  as  far  as  fell 
under  my  observation,  are  confined  to  the  art  of  the 
blacksmith  and  to  a  little  leather-work.  Some  of 
these  articles,  such  as  provision  or  luggage  bags, 
cushions,  small  leather  pouches  for  tobacco,  and  gun- 
cloths,  especially  the  leather  bags,  are  very  neat ;  but 
even  these  are  mostly  manufactured  at  Tawarek,  and 
especially  by  females,  so  that  the  industry  of  the  city 
is  hardly  of  any  account." 

Not  much  dyeing  or  weaving  is  done  in  Timbuctoo, 
clothing  being  chiefly  imported  from  other  places. 
Some  of  the  natives,  however,  are  very  skilful  in 
adorning  their  clothing  with  a  fine  stitching  of  silk ; 
and  those  of  some  of  the  neighbouring  districts  pro- 


312  DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS. 

duce  excellent  woollen  blankets  and  carpets  of  vari- 
ous colours,  which  are  in  great  demand  among  the 
natives. 

Many  articles  used  in  Timbuctoo  Dr.  Barth  found 
to  be  of  English  manufacture,  brought  either  through 
Morocco  or  by  way  of  Sivera,  where  there  are  many 
European  merchants.  All  the  cutlery  used  in  Tim- 
buctoo is  of  English  workmanship ;  all  the  calico  Barth 
saw  bore  the  name  of  one  and  the  same  Manchester 
firm,  printed  in  Arabic  letters.  Tea  was  largely 
bought  by  the  Arabs,  though  still  too  dear  for  the 
natives.  Tobacco,  red  cloth,  sashes,  and  looking- 
glasses  seemed  in  great  demand. 

Almost  the  only  things  sent  out  from  Timbuctoo 
at  the  time  of  Dr.  Barth's  visit  seemed  to  be  gold, 
some  gum  and  wax,  a  little  ivory,  and  occasionally  a 
few  slaves.  The  place  seemed  to  him  to  offer  a 
great  field  for  European  trade,  were  it  not  for  the 
difficulties  in  the  way  of  free  intercourse  with  Euro- 
peans. The  position  of  the  town,  at  the  edge  of  the 
desert  and  on  the  border  of  various  tribes,  seemed  to 
make  a  strong  government  very  difficult,  almost  im- 
possible ;  while  its  distance  from  the  west  coast  or 
the  mouth  of  the  Niger  made  it  inaccessible.  Yet, 
on  the  other  hand,  the  great  facilities  of  the  noble 
river,  and  the  security  by  a  mountain  chain  and  a 
tract  of  frightful  desert  from  all  danger  of  French 
attack    from    Algeria    or    Senegal,    and    the    former 


DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS.  313 

friendly  feelings  of  the  natives  towards  the  English, 
seemed  to  point  to  a  sure  way  for  English  pioneers. 

After  many  delays  on  account  of  the  illness  of  Dr. 
Barth,  and  other  reasons,  and  one  or  two  false  starts, 
a  final  and  real  start  from  Timbuctoo  was  made  on 
the  18  th  of  May.  It  must  have  been  with  no  small 
delight  that  our  traveller  found  himself  at  last  free 
for  ever  from  the  turbulent  Fulbe  and  Tawarek  and 
their  swampy  regions.  He  found  the  country  gradu- 
ally improved.  The  route  lay  partly  along  the  banks 
of  the  magnificent  river,  on  beautiful  sandy  beaches, 
at  times  shut  in  by  downs,  richly  clad  with  dum 
palms  and  other  trees.  The  prevalence  of  swamps, 
however,  forced  the  travellers  occasionally  to  a  distance 
from  the  river ;  but  even  there  the  country  was  en- 
livened by  grassy  creeks,  with  groves  and  villages, 
and  herds  of  cattle,  sheep,  and  goats. 

Without  any  serious  perils  our  traveller  reached 
Gogo,  the  ancient  capital  of  a  strong  and  mighty 
empire.  "  Cheered  at  having  reached  this  spot," 
writes  Dr.  Barth,  "  I  passed  a  tranquil  night,  and 
rising  early  in  the  morning,  lay  down  outside  my 
tent,  quietly  enjoying  the  prospect  over  this  once 
busy  locality,  which,  according  to  many  writers,  was 
once  the  most  splendid  city  of  Negroland,  though  it 
is  now  the  desolate  abode  of  a  small  and  miserable 
population.  Just  opposite  to  my  tent  was  a  ruined 
massive    tower,    the    last    remains    of    the    principal 


314  DR.  BABTH'S  TBAVELS. 

mosque  of  the  capital,  the  sepulchre  of  the  great 
conqueror  Mohammed." 

Except  this  tower,  however,  all  that  remained  of 
the  once  great  city  of  Negroland  was  some  three  to 
four  hundred  huts,  in  separate  groups,  and  surrounded 
by  heaps  of  rubbish.  Here  an  old  man  offered  to 
conduct  our  traveller  to  a  place  of  interest,  and  led 
him  through  the  rubbish  to  a  long  narrow  clay  build- 
ing; but  the  master  of  the  house  refused  them  admit- 
tance. Dr.  Barth  seems  to  think  this  may  have  been 
the  burial-place  of  Mungo  Park. 

To  the  south  of  this  old  capital  of  Negroland  the 
country  improved  greatly,  and  on  July  9  th  Barth, 
bidding  farewell  to  his  kind  old  friend  El  Bakay,  who 
had  escorted  him  thus  far,  crossed  the  river  some  ten 
miles  below  Gogo.  From  this  place  to  Say,  where  he 
had  first  crossed  the  river,  a  distance  of  more  than 
two  hundred  and  fifty  miles,  was  traversed  in  safety, 
except  for  an  alarming  adventure  with  some  mounted 
natives,  who  mistook  his  party  for  a  hostile  army,  and 
were  about  to  attack  them.  In  the  half-civilized 
regions  through  which  the  return  journey  lay,  there 
was  the  same  trouble  with  greedy  rulers,  the  same 
annoyances  from  thievish,  hostile  natives,  the  same 
trials  of  rains,  swamps,  and  fevers,  that  had  marked 
the  outward  journey.  More  than  once,  too,  their  sup- 
plies gave  out,  and  threatened  them  with  starvation. 
At  the  town  of  Sokoto  a  pleasant  surprise  awaited 


DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS.  315 

them  in  the  shape  of  news  that  Mr.  Vogel  and  a  party 
of  English  travellers  sent  out  by  Government  had 
arrived  in  Kukawa. 

Dr.  Barth  thus  describes  his  meeting  with  Mr. 
Vogel :  "  Having  rejoined  my  camels,  I  set  out  with- 
out delay  through  the  forest,  taking  the  lead  with  my 
head  servant ;  but  I  had  scarcely  proceeded  three  miles 
when  I  saw  advancing  towards  me  a  person  of  strange 
aspect — a  young  man  of  very  fair  complexion,  dressed 
in  a  tobe  like  the  one  I  wore  myself,  and  with  a  white 
turban  wound  thickly  round  his  head.  He  was  accom- 
panied by  two  or  three  blacks,  likewise  on  horseback. 
One  of  them  I  recognized  as  my  servant  Madi,  whom, 
on  setting  out  from  Kukawa,  I  had  left  in  the  house 
as  a  guardian.  As  soon  as  he  saw  me  he  told  the 
young  man  that  I  was  Abd  el  Kerim ;  in  consequence 
of  which  Mr.  Vogel  (for  he  it  was)  rushed  forward, 
and,  taken  by  surprise  as  both  of  us  were,  we  gave 
each  other  a  hearty  reception  from  horseback.  As 
for  myself,  I  had  not  had  the  remotest  expectation  of 
meeting  him ;  and  he,  on  his  part,  had  only  a  short 
time  before  received  the  intelligence  of  my  safe  return 
from  the  west.  Not  having  the  slightest  notion  that 
I  was  alive,  and  judging  from  its  Arab  address  that 
the  letter  which  I  forwarded  to  him  from  Kano  was 
a  letter  from  some  Arab,  he  had  put  it  by  without 
opening  it,  waiting  till  he  might  meet  with  a  person 
who  should  be  able  to  read  it. 


316  DB.  BABTH'S  TBAVELS. 

"  In  the  midst  of  this  inhospitable  forest  we  dis- 
mounted and  sat  down  together  on  the  ground ;  and 
my  camels  having  arrived,  I  took  out  my  small  bag 
of  provisions,  and  had  some  coffee  boiled,  so  that  we 
were  quite  at  home.  It  was  with  great  amazement 
that  I  heard  from  my  young  friend  that  there  were 
no  supplies  in  Kukawa ;  that  what  he  had  brought 
with  him  had  been  spent ;  and  that  the  usurper,  Abd 
e'  Rahman,  had  treated  him  very  badly,  having  even 
taken  possession  of  the  property  which  I  had  left  in 
Zinder." 

Soon  the  rest  of  the  caravan  came  up,  and  were 
amazed  to  find  their  leader  quietly  conversing  with 
a  friend  in  the  midst  of  the  forest,  while  the  whole 
district  was  infested  by  hostile  men. 

After  arranging  to  meet  in  Kukawa  before  the  end 
of  the  month,  the  two  friends  separated,  Mr.  Vogel 
going  on  to  Zinder,  Dr.  Barth  hastening  to  overtake 
his  people. 

On  reaching  safely  the  town  of  Kukawa,  from 
which  place  he  had  first  commenced  his  journeys  of 
exploration  into  Negroland,  it  might  seem  as  if  our 
traveller  had  at  last  overcome  all  his  difficulties,  and 
should  be  able  to  enjoy  a  short  rest  before  setting  out 
on  the  last  stage  of  his  homeward  journey.  But  such 
was  not  the  case,  and  he  had  to  pass  four  rather  un- 
pleasant months  in  the  town.  Being  in  want  of 
money,  and  finding  that  a  great  part  of  Mr.  Vogel's 


DR.  BARTH' S  TRAVELS.  317 

stores  had  been  abstracted,  Dr.  Barth  explained  these 
matters  to  the  sheik,  to  whom  he  first  made  a  present 
of  about  £8  in  money.  By  so  doing  he  incurred  the 
dislike  of  one  of  the  most  influential  courtiers,  whose 
servant,  or  more  probably  himself,  had  obtained  the 
greater  share  of  the  plunder.  Another  disagreeable 
circumstance  was  the  unfriendly  relation  between  Mr. 
Vogel  and  Corporal  Church,  one  of  his  sappers,  which 
Dr.  Barth  did  his  best  to  improve. 

More  pleasant  occupation  was  found  in  looking 
over  the  books  Mr.  Vogel  had  brought  with  him, 
and  also  re-reading  a  packet  of  letters,  some  dated 
as  far  back  as  December  1851,  found  in  a  box  which 
had  been  plundered.  Partly  in  fulfilment  of  a  vow 
he  had  made,  and  partly  to  make  the  natives  more 
friendly  towards  him,  Dr.  Barth  made  a  present  to 
the  inhabitants  of  the  capital  on  Christmas  day  of 
fourteen  oxen,  not  forgetting  either  rich  or  poor,  blind 
or  maimed,  nor  even  the  Arab  strangers. 

On  the  29th  of  December  Mr.  Vogel  returned  to 
Ktikawa,  and  Dr.  Barth  and  the  brave  enterprising 
young  traveller  spent  twenty  days  together  very 
pleasantly,  the  latter  quickly  adapting  himself  to  the 
strange  new  life.  In  his  youthful  enthusiasm,  how- 
ever, Mr.  Vogel  seems  sometimes  to  have  made  the 
mistake  of  expecting  that  his  companions,  recently 
arrived  from  Europe,  perhaps  with  less  elevated  ideas 
of  their  mission,  should,  like  himself,  give  up  all  their 


318  DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS. 

pretensions  to  comfort.  Thus  quarrels  arose,  and  hin- 
dered the  work  of  the  party  sent  out  by  Government. 
The  more  experienced  and  the  young  traveller,  how- 
ever, passed  their  time  very  pleasantly,  exchanging 
opinions  about  the  countries  both  had  already  trav- 
ersed, and  making  plans  for  Mr.  Vogel's  future  course, 
Dr.  Barth  giving  his  young  friend  much  information, 
and  the  care  of  clearing  up  several  undecided  points. 

"  Thus,"  he  writes,  "  we  began  cheerfully  the  year 
1855,  in  which  I  was  to  return  to  Europe  from  my 
long  career  of  hardships  and  privations,  and  in  which 
my  young  friend  was  to  endeavour  to  complete  my 
discoveries  and  researches. 

"  Meanwhile  some  interesting  excursions  to  the 
shores  of  the  Tchad  formed  a  pleasant  interruption 
in  our  course  of  studies  and  scientific  communication ; 
and  these  little  trips  were  especially  interesting  on 
account  of  the  extraordinary  manner  in  which  the 
shores  of  the  lake  had  been  changed  since  I  last  saw 
them." 

There  were  two  subjects  which  caused  Dr.  Barth 
anxiety  about  the  future  of  the  enterprising  young 
explorer  Mr.  Vogel ; — the  first,  his  want  of  experience, 
for  he  was  still  a  young  man,  and  fresh  from  Europe ; 
the  other  was  his  weakness  of  digestion,  which  made 
it  impossible  for  him  to  eat  meat  of  any  kind.  The 
very  sight  of  a  dish  of  meat  made  him  sick. 

Having  assisted  Mr.  Vogel  with  all  his  preparations, 


DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS.  319 

and  foreseeing  trouble  with  the  transporting  of  his 
rather  heavy  and  unusual  luggage,  the  older  traveller 
escorted  his  young  friend  out  of  the  town  on  the 
20th  of  January,  bearing  him  company  in  the  fol- 
lowing day's  march,  and  leaving  him  with  the  best 
of  wishes.  Corporal  Macguire  went  on  with  Mr. 
Vogel,  but  it  was  thought  best  for  Corporal  Church 
to  return  to  Europe  with  Dr.  Barth — perhaps  because 
of  the  frequent  disagreements  between  him  and  his 
young  commanding  officer. 

This  was  the  last  Dr.  Barth  saw  of  the  brave  young 
explorer,  who  set  out  so  cheerfully  and  hopefully.  It 
is  supposed  that  he  was  afterwards  murdered,  while 
Macguire  probably  shared  a  similar  fate,  on  his  way 
home,  at  the  well  of  Bedwaram. 

Barth  meanwhile  returned  to  Kukawa,  feeling 
rather  desolate  and  lonely.  The  cold  to  which  he 
had  been  exposed  on  the  previous  night  brought  on 
a  violent  attack  of  rheumatism,  which  laid  him  up 
for  a  long  time,  causing  him  many  sleepless  nights, 
and  leaving  him  unusually  weak.  Yet  he  repeatedly 
begged  the  sheik  to  let  him  depart,  and  supply  him 
at  least  with  camels  to  make  up  for  the  loss  he  had 
suffered  from  the  insurrection  in  the  town.  To  his 
great  delight,  two  respectable  Arabs  offered  to  accom- 
pany him  to  Fezzan. 

On  the  20th  of  February  Barth  left  Kukawa,  and 
pitched  his  tent  on  the  high  ground  outside  the  city, 


320  DR.  BARTH' S  TRAVELS. 

feeling  extremely  happy  in  having  at  length  left  be- 
hind him  a  town  of  which  he  had  become  very  tired. 

But  he  was  not  to  get  off  so  easily ;  for  the  sheik, 
with  whom,  as  with  most  of  his  kind,  time  was  of  no 
value,  managed  to  hinder  the  traveller.  At  last,  see- 
ing his  determination,  the  sheik  sent  five  camels, 
which,  though  of  inferior  quality,  enabled  Barth  to 
set  out.  But  still  there  was  delay,  as  the  sheik 
earnestly  desired  Barth  to  return  to  the  town,  prom- 
ising him  the  fulfilment  of  all  his  claims.  Anxious 
to  leave  on  good  terms  with  the  chief,  the  traveller 
went  into  the  town  again,  but  declined  to  stay,  as  his 
health  rendered  it  necessary  that  he  should  at  once 
return  home.  Expecting  to  be  hindered  yet  a  couple 
of  months  if  he  remained  in  the  town,  he  offered  to 
wait  outside  the  city  for  a  few  days  longer,  and  if 
the  sheik  should  wish  to  see  him,  to  come  to  the 
residence  every  day.  To  this  the  sheik  agreed,  and 
the  two  parted  in  the  most  quiet  and  satisfactory 
manner,  and  it  appeared  as  if  everything  were  ar- 
ranged. Accordingly  our  traveller  purchased  two 
more  camels,  and  on  the  25th  engaged  a  guide,  pay- 
ing him  half  his  salary  in  advance. 

But  when  all  seemed  ready  for  departure,  again  a 
message  came  from  the  sheik  ordering  Barth  to  re- 
turn. He  did  so  very  reluctantly,  and  found  that  the 
chief  was  unwilling  to  let  him  depart  unsatisfied. 
Meanwhile  a  large  caravan  had  arrived  from  the  north, 


DR.  BABTH'S  TBAVELS.  321 

bringing,  among  other  things,  money  for  the  English 
mission ;  addressed,  however,  not  to  Dr.  Barth,  who 
had  been  given  up  as  lost,  but  to  Mr.  Vogel.  This 
made  Barth's  position  still  more  unpleasant ;  for,  in- 
stead of  leaving  the  country  honourably,  he  was  now 
considered  as  almost  disgraced  by  those  who  had  sent 
him,  the  command  seeming  to  have  been  taken  from 
him  and  given  to  another  and  a  younger  man.  This 
still  further  delayed  his  departure,  and  it  was  not 
until  the  4  th  of  May  that  Barth  finally  left  the  town 
and  encamped  outside  the  gate.  There  he  waited 
some  days  for  a  fellow-traveller,  Kolo,  who  was  still 
detained  in  the  town,  and  so  did  not  take  leave  of  the 
sheik  until  the  9th  of  the  month. 

"  He  received  me,"  says  Barth,  "  with  great  kind- 
ness, but  was  by  no  means  backward  in  begging  for 
several  articles  to  be  sent  to  him,  especially  a  small 
cannon ;  which  was  rather  out  of  comparison  with  the 
poor  present  which  he  had  bestowed  upon  myself." 

Just  before  setting  out,  Barth  lost  three  camels, 
so  that  he  was  obliged  to  throw  away  several  things, 
with  which  his  people  had  overladen  his  animals. 

The  final  start  was  made  on  the  10th  of  May,  in  a 
heavy  thunder-storm.  But  nevertheless,  Barth  says, 
"  I  was  filled  with  the  hope  that  a  merciful  Providence 
would  allow  me  to  reach  home  in  safety,  in  order  to 
give  a  full  account  of  my  labours  and  discoveries." 

The  first  night  of  their  march  was  somewhat  dis- 

(94)  21 


322  DR.  BARTH' S  TRAVELS. 

turbed  by  the  noise  and  cries  of  three  monkeys  which 
Barth  wished  to  take  to  Europe.  They  so  frightened 
the  camels  that  they  started  off  at  a  gallop,  breaking 
several  things,  amongst  others  a  strong  musket. 
Nothing  could  be  done  but  to  let  loose  the  malicious 
little  creatures ;  which,  instead  of  remaining  quiet, 
amused  themselves  with  loosening  all  the  ropes  with 
which  the  luggage  was  tied  on  to  the  backs  of  the 
animals. 

At  Bedwaram  (where  poor  Macguire  was  probably 
afterwards  killed)  the  travellers  stopped  for  supplies 
of  water,  but  had  great  trouble  in  opening  the  well. 
Then  followed  a  tedious  night  march  through  the 
dreary  desert  of  Tintumma,  where  Barth,  lingering 
too  long  over  a  cup  of  coffee,  got  left  behind,  and 
would  probably  have  had  some  difficulty  in  rejoining 
the  caravan,  had  not  the  servants,  contrary  to  his 
orders  to  spare  the  powder  as  much  as  possible,  kept 
firing  their  pistols  off  at  random.  Cheered  by  the 
firing,  and  perhaps  impressed  with  the  awful  character 
of  the  country  through  which  they  were  travelling  at 
such  an  hour,  the  slaves,  forgetful  of  their  over-fatigue, 
kept  up  an  uninterrupted  song,  which  reached  the 
ears  of  Barth  as  he  followed  at  some  distance.  When 
their  leader  did  at  last  overtake  them,  the  servants 
and  slaves  would  fain  have  lagged  behind,  being  very 
weary,  and  Barth  had  trouble  in  urging  them  on,  to 
prevent  them  falling  a  sacrifice  to  thirst  and  fatigue. 


DR.  BARTE'S  TRAVELS.  323 

At  the  beautiful  well  of  Dibbela  (which,  however, 
contains  abominable  water),  Mr.  Henry  Warrington, 
who  had  accompanied  Vogel  to  Kiikawa,  fell  ill  of 
dysentery — probably  the  result  of  the  heat  and  the 
bad  water. 

After  much  weary  travelling  over  sandy  deserts 
under  scorching  suns,  Barth  at  length  approached 
Tripoli.  Very  pleasant  were  the  kind  messages  await- 
ing him,  and  most  welcome  to  the  exhausted  traveller 
was  the  sight  of  the  wide  expanse  of  sea,  which  in  the 
bright  southern  sunshine  spreads  out  with  a  tint  of 
the  darkest  blue.      He  thus  describes  his  feelings : — 

"  I  felt  so  grateful  to  Providence  for  having  again 
reached  in  safety  the  border  of  the  Mediterranean 
basin,  the  cradle  of  European  civilization,  which  from 
an  early  period  had  formed  the  object  of  my  earnest 
longings  and  most  serious  course  of  studies,  that  I 
would  fain  have  alighted  from  my  horse  on  the  sea- 
beach  to  offer  up  a  prayer  of  thanksgiving  to  the 
Almighty,  who,  with  the  most  conspicuous  mercy,  had 
led  me  through  the  many  dangers  which  surrounded 
my  path,  both  from  fanatical  men  and  an  unhealthy 
climate." 

Having  stayed  four  days  in  Tripoli,  where  he  was 
warmly  welcomed  by  many  friends,  Barth  embarked 
in  a  Turkish  steamer  returning  to  Malta.  There  he 
reembarked,  and  landing  at  Marseilles,  passed  through 
Paris,  and   reached    London  on   the   6th   September, 


324  DR.  BARTH'S  TRAVELS. 

where  he  was  kindly  received  by  Lord  Palmerston 
and  Lord  Clarendon,  who  took  the  greatest  interest  in 
hearing  of  the  remarkable  success  that  had  attended 
his  expedition.  He  had  been  absent  from  Europe 
nearly  five  and  a  half  years.  The  whole  expedition 
had  cost  the  Government  a  sum  under  £1,400. 

Barth  had  indeed  good  reason  to  be  thankful  for 
the  good  fortune  that  had  attended  him.  The  mere 
fact  of  his  having  entered  and  left  Timbuctoo  alive 
and  unharmed  was  in  itself  a  remarkable  proof  of  his 
zeal  and  perseverance. 

His  discoveries  had  been  many  and  valuable,  and 
afforded  much  new  information  about  the  past  history 
and  present  condition,  manners,  customs,  and  distinc- 
tions of  the  various  tribes  of  Central  Africa,  both 
Arab  and  Negro.  But  his  grand  discovery  was  that 
concerning  the  Niger — "  the  great  highway  of  West 
Central  Africa,"  as  he  aptly  named  it.  He  succeeded 
in  exploring  that  part  of  the  river  left  unknown  by 
the  untimely  fate  of  Mungo  Park.  It  is  to  Dr.  Barth 
that  we  owe  the  discovery  that  the  Benue'  is  a  tribu- 
tary of  the  Niger,  and  that  by  it  European  boats  can 
reach  the  regions  bordering  on  Lake  Tchad. 

Not  only  did  Barth  succeed  in  making  known  a 
part  of  Africa  hitherto  unknown  even  to  most  Arab 
merchants,  but  he  also  contrived  to  establish  friendly 
relations  with  all  the  most  powerful  chiefs  along  the 
river,  up  even  to  the  mysterious  city  of  Timbuctoo. 


DR.  BABTH'S  TBAVELS.  325 

For  Britain  Dr.  Barth's  discoveries  have  a  special 
importance ;  for,  by  showing  the  friendly  feelings  of 
the  negro  states  towards  England,  they  pointed  a  way 
to  a  great  field  for  missionary  enterprise,  and  the 
ending  of  the  disgraceful  traffic  in  slaves.  It  seems 
that  the  sovereigns  of  Central  Africa,  when  pressed 
by  debts  which  they  cannot  otherwise  meet,  or  eager 
to  obtain  arms  and  gunpowder,  endeavour  to  capture 
the  black  bullion  of  the  country,  which  they  sell  to 
the  Americans,  or  exchange  for  the  instruments  of  war. 
Dr.  Barth  thinks  that  if  these  native  princes  could 
be  got  to  understand  that  Europeans  are  willing  to 
exchange  the  European  goods  for  cotton,  rice,  and  such 
useful  products,  doubtless  those  commodities  would  be 
more  cultivated,  and  peace  take  the  place  of  war. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

MR.    THOMPSON    ON    THE    NIGER. 

Among  recent  African  travellers  Mr.  Joseph  Thompson 
takes  high  and  honourable  rank.  He  was  second  in 
command  of  the  expedition  which  Mr.  Keith  Johnston 
led  ;  and  when  that  gentleman  met  his  untimely  death 
at  the  very  outset  of  his  enterprise,  the  journey  was 
carried  on  by  Mr.  Thompson  to  a  successful  close. 
This  was  the  beginning  of  young  Thompson's  career 
as  an  explorer,  which  has  since  gone  on  with  increas- 
ing results  and  distinction.  The  traveller  is  still  a 
young  man,  and,  if  life  be  spared  to  him,  may  be  ex- 
pected to  do  yet  more  signal  work  in  Africa.  His 
book,  "  Through  Masailand,"  was  received  with  marked 
favour  by  the  press  and  the  public,  and  at  once  placed 
the  author  in  the  foremost  rank  of  African  explorers. 
The  writer  of  these  pages  had  the  pleasure  of  meet- 
ing Mr.  Thompson  shortly  after  his  return  from  one 
of  his  African  journeys,  and  of  hearing  from  the  young 
traveller's  own  lips  many  interesting  and  curious  de- 
tails of  life  and  pioneer  work  in  Central  Africa.     We 


MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER.  327 

particularly  remember  Mr.  Thompson's  remarks  as  to 
the  strange  fascination  which  African  travel  exerts 
for  all  who  have  ever  had  experience  of  it ; — how,  in 
spite  of  the  innumerable  hardships  and  daily  perils 
that  must  be  encountered,  in  spite  of  the  deadly  nature 
of  the  climate  and  the  certainty  of  the  traveller  suf- 
fering more  or  less  from  its  poison,  the  charm  of 
African  travel  still  remains  irresistible,  luring  back 
the  explorer  again  and  again,  though  he  knows  all  the 
while  that  every  new  expedition  probably  cuts  years 
off  his  life. 

One  of  Mr.  Thompson's  latest  journeys  was  along 
the  course  of  the  Niger  to  the  central  Soudan.  As 
being  germane  to  our  subject,  and  an  appropriate  con- 
clusion to  this  brief  story  of  the  Niger,  we  purpose 
giving  an  epitome  of  his  experiences  of  a  region  which 
the  labours,  the  heroism,  and  the  death  of  many  brave 
men  have  now  rendered  almost  classic  ground. 

Mr.  Thompson  left  Liverpool  for  the  African  coast 
in  February  1885,  and  after  touching  at  Madeira, 
Teneriffe,  and  Canary,  landed  at  Bathurst  on  the 
Gambia  river.  Here  the  young  traveller  did  not  fail 
to  visit  the  house  which  Mungo  Park  occupied  while 
preparations  were  in  train  for  his  great  journey.  We 
may  imagine  what  absorbing  interest  this  spot  would 
have  for  Mr.  Thompson ;  for  here  were  forged  the 
beginnings  of  the  long  chain  of  African  exploration 
in  which   Mungo   Park   was   the  first  link,  and  Mr. 


328  MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER. 

Thompson  himself  among  the  latest.  Wh6  will  be 
the  last,  final  link,  and  at  what  date  he  will  fall,  who 
may  say  ? 

From  Bathurst  the  traveller  journeyed  to  Sierra 
Leone,  which  he  describes  as  the  chief  centre  of  illu- 
mination for  the  Dark  Continent.  That  is  to  say,  the 
people  of  Sierra  Leone  regard  themselves  as  decidedly 
persons  of  distinction,  intellectually  speaking;  and  Mr. 
Thompson  gives  us  a  rapid  but  amusing  glimpse  of 
the  Sierra  Leone  "nigger,"  promenading  himself  in 
pants  of  the  latest  Parisian  mode,  an  astonishing  ex- 
panse of  snow-white  linen,  stove-pipe  hat  cocked 
jantily  over  his  nose,  and  flourishing  the  trimmest  of 
canes  in  his  dusky  hand — altogether  putting  on  an 
amount  of  "  weather-helm,"  as  sailors  say,  that  to 
the  stranger  is  highly  edifying. 

Mr.  Thompson's  first  glimpse  of  the  Niger  was  the 
reverse  of  alluring.  "  Everything  looked  miserable 
and  dreary — a  steaming  atmosphere,  rain,  thunder, 
lightning,  and  the  most  threatening  of  clouds."  To 
right  and  left  the  eye  of  the  traveller  rested  on  nought 
but  interminable  expanses  of  mangroves,  between 
which  monotonous  walls  the  great  river  stretched  for- 
ward in  long  reaches,  discoloured  and  gloomy  in  hue, 
and  throwing  out  numerous  arms  this  way  and  that 
— a  depressing  vista  that  summoned  up  dreary  visions 
of  fever  and  ague,  and  the  innumerable  physical  ills 
that  dog  the  footsteps  of  the  white  man  in  Africa. 


MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER.  329 

Mr.  Thompson  had  visited  many  places  which  dis- 
puted for  the  honour  of  being  the  true  "  white  man's 
grave,"  but  his  first  view  of  the  Niger  went  far  to 
convince  him  that,  as  the  advertisements  say,  "  none 
other  was  genuine." 

At  Akassa,  the  headquarters  of  the  National  African 
Company,  whose  servant  Mr.  Thompson  for  the  time 
being  was,  the  traveller's  sea-journey  ended.  A  beach 
strewn  with  the  hulls  of  old  ships  and  steamers,  an 
old  timber  jetty,  and  a  new  iron  one  in  course  of 
construction,  and  behind  these  the  residences  of  the 
merchants,  looking  pleasantly  cool  beneath  their  broad 
verandas,  the  whole  framed  in  by  the  mangrove  woods 
— such  are  the  general  features  of  Akassa.  Mr. 
Thompson  was  hospitably  welcomed  and  entertained 
by  the  palm-oil  merchants  of  the  depot,  the  kindliness 
of  his  reception  going  a  considerable  way  towards 
raising  his  spirits  from  the  depression  which  his  first 
glimpses  of  the  Niger  had  induced. 

We  next  behold  the  traveller  fairly  afloat  on  the 
great  river,  his  means  of  transit  being  the  National 
African  Company's  steam-launch  Frangais.  His 
physical  feelings  are  not  enviable ;  for  to  the  intense 
heat  of  the  atmosphere  is  added  the  circumstance  that 
he  sits  close  alongside  the  boilers,  so  that  he  is  all 
the  time  very  much  like  a  man  in  a  Turkish  bath 
against  his  will.  But  the  scene  which  feasted  the 
traveller's  eyes  in  a  great  measure  compensated  for 


330  MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER. 

the  discomfort  of  his  bodily  sensations.  His  first 
unfavourable  impressions  of  the  Niger  had  now  dis- 
appeared— no  longer  did  he  view  it  as  the  white 
man's  sepulchre.  In  place  of  the  gloomy  swamps, 
miasma-breathing  marshes,  and  fever-laden  air  which 
characterize  the  entrance  of  the  river,  his  gaze  now 
rested  on  magnificent  virgin  forests  of  silk-cotton  and 
palm-oil  trees.  Here,  the  Frangais  glided  past  little 
hamlets  of  square-shaped  huts  set  in  plantations  of 
cocoa-nut  trees ;  there,  clearings  planted  with  sugar- 
cane, beans,  and  yams.  Naked  boys  sported  in  the 
warm  waters  in  the  vicinity  of  the  villages,  who 
shouted  and  laughed  as  the  steamer  drew  near;  women 
carrying  water  from  the  river  swelled  the  hubbub, 
while  others  came  flying  out  from  the  houses  to  watch 
the  steamer  pass.  Some  of  the  men,  with  an  eye  to 
business,  put  off  in  their  canoes  and  offered  fish  for 
sale  to  the  travellers,  while  others  quietly  watched 
the  Frangais  from  the  shore  unmoved  and  unexcited ; 
and  Mr.  Thompson  could  not  help  thinking  of  the 
old  days  of  African  travel,  when  such  an  invasion 
of  the  black  man's  territory  as  he  was  now  making 
would  have  been  met  at  the  spear-point. 

In  these  Niger  hamlets  all  the  work  of  the  field 
seemed  to  be  borne  by  the  women,  and  our  travellers 
constantly  beheld  groups  of  them  preparing  palm  oil 
and  engaged  in  other  plantation  work.  The  scenery 
of  the  river  changed  continually  as  the  little  launch 


MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER.  331 

followed  its  windings.  Now  it  twisted  and  coiled  in 
serpent-like  folds,  now  it  broadened  into  a  flashing 
lake,  girdled  with  yellow  sand  and  framed  in  by 
the  primeval  forest.  Huts  dotted  the  banks,  canoes 
paddled  up  and  down  the  stream,  a  fresh  breeze  blew 
in  the  face  of  the  travellers,  and  in  this  wise  the 
Frangais  pursued  her  voyage  towards  the  Soudan 
gaily  enough. 

Now  and  then  an  incident  of  a  more  stirring  char- 
acter befell — such  as  the  appearance  of  a  hippopotamus. 
A  shout  from  the  lookout-man,  a  sudden  snatching  up 
of  rifles,  and  a  hurrying  to  get  sight  of  the  formidable 
river-horse !  But  before  aim  can  be  taken  the  un- 
wieldy creature  has  gone  down  again,  leaving  nothing 
behind  him  but  a  grunt,  and  Master  Hippo  is  not  to 
be  caught  "  this  trip,"  as  they  say  in  Australia. 

On  the  fourth  day  of  the  Frangais'  voyage,  the 
travellers  (Mr.  Thompson  was  accompanied  by  two 
comrades)  were  able  to  form  a  just  estimate  of  the 
full  breadth  and  volume  of  the  majestic  river  whose 
course  they  were  following.  The  height  of  the  banks 
was  now  between  twenty  and  thirty  feet,  the  stretch 
of  gleaming  river  and  golden  sand  between  being 
from  one  mile  to  a  mile  and  a  half  in  extent. 

Evidences  of  trade  now  met  the  gaze  on  every 
hand.  Every  mile  or  two  a  very  practical-looking 
factory,  with  unsesthetic  galvanized  iron  roof  and 
whitewashed  walls,  broke  the  dense  greenery  of  the 


332  MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER. 

forest.  Every  year  the  stillness  of  the  woods  is 
being  more  and  more  disturbed  by-  the  whistle  of  the 
steamer ;  every  year  the  leopard  and  the  monkey  are 
driven  further  back  into  their  forest  fastnesses.  The 
Niger,  as  an  exciting  arena  of  sport  and  hairbreadth 
adventure,  is  yearly  getting  the  romance  knocked 
out  of  it.  Reflecting  upon  all  which,  Mr.  Thompson, 
who,  we  suspect,  is  more  of  a  traveller  and  a  sports- 
man, after  all,  than  a  trader,  could  not  suppress  a 
sigh.  Disembarking  at  the  residence  of  an  "  agent," 
he  was  greeted  by  gentlemen  fashionably  set  forth  in 
linen  of  the  whitest  and  shiniest,  and  escorted  into  a 
house  appointed  with  mahogany  English  furniture, 
while  summer-houses  and  sunflowers  were  among  the 
amenities  of  the  surrounding  gardens.  Finally,  a 
dinner  of  European  quality,  and  more  than  European 
abundance,  was  spread  for  the  stranger's  entertain- 
ment. 

This  was  all  very  pleasant  and  comfortable,  but  it 
was  hardly  this  phase  of  life  on  the  Niger  that  Mr. 
Thompson  was  desirous  of  studying.  As  soon  as 
possible,  therefore,  he  betook  himself  to  the  contem- 
plation of  natural  man  as  he  manifests  himself  on  the 
Niger.  Here  again  he  was  fated  to  disenchantment. 
The  once  wild  and  untutored  black  man,  who  had  at 
least  a  sort  of  savage  grandeur  and  picturesqueness,  is 
now  a  "  nigger  "  merely,  passes  the  time  of  day  to  the 
stranger,  and  wears  a  lawn-tennis  hat  emblazoned  with 


MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER.  333 

the  self-same  device  with  which  young  English  tennis 
dandies  delight  to  broider  theirs — the  ubiquitous  sun- 
flower. Indeed,  this  unmistakable  note  of  an  aesthetic 
civilization  notwithstanding,  the  negroes  of  the  Niger 
are  at  present  poor  and  wretched  creatures,  half- 
starved  in  body  and  worn  down  by  incessant  civil 
feuds  and  warfare.  But  there  are  signs,  Mr.  Thomp- 
son tells  us,  that  a  brighter  future  is  in  store  for  these 
races,  when  the  British  Government  shall  have  become 
firmly  established  as  the  protectors  of  the  region. 

And  here  it  is  fitting  to  note  a  change  which  took 
place  in  Mr.  Thompson's  opinion  in  regard  to  the  effect 
of  trade  and  civilization  on  the  Niger.  At  first  he 
was  disposed  to  think  that  the  chief  result  of  the 
white  man's  commerce  with  the  natives  of  the  Niger 
had  been  to  inoculate  them  with  a  love  of  strong 
drink,  the  disastrous  effects  of  which  were  abundantly 
manifest  on  the  coast  settlements.  But  as  he  jour- 
neyed further  up  the  river,  he  was  glad  to  notice  a 
vast  improvement  on  this  point.  He  found  large 
stores  filled  with  European  cloth  and  hardware  destined 
for  the  native  population,  while  the  stock  of  gin  and 
other  ardent  liquors  was  by  comparison  very  small. 
The  African  Company  alone  is  to  be  thanked  for  this 
new  and  admirable  departure,  and  it  is  doing  all  in 
its  power  to  retrieve  the  evil  done  under  the  former 
system  of  trading. 

After  halting  awhile  at  Lokoja,  where  he  was  joined 


334  ME.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER. 

by  Mr.  W.  J.  Seago,  a  gentleman  who  had  passed 
seven  years  on  the  Niger,  Mr.  Thompson  resumed  his 
journey.  The  river  was  now  flowing  through  a  deep 
valley,  banked  by  precipitous  cliffs.  The  scenery  was 
in  parts  romantic,  and  the  heat  "  simply  terrific."  On 
March  31st  Egga  was  reached,  a  considerable  town, 
and  here  an  interpreter  joined  the  expedition.  At 
Shunga,  where  Mr.  Forbes  the  naturalist  had  died  a 
short  time  before,  Mr.  Thompson  was  much  interested 
in  the  Yoruba  men  and  the  Nupe  women  traders,  and 
especially  in  the  enormous  quantity  of  clothing  worn 
by  both.  A  Yoruba  merchant's  pants  consume  fifteen 
yards  of  cotton  cloth,  his  coat  rather  more,  his  turban 
thirty  yards ;  throw  in  ten  yards  for  superfluous 
adornment,  and  you  have  seventy  yards  of  cloth  in 
all.  Here,  as  Mr.  Thompson  suggests,  is  a  magnificent 
field  for  European  enterprise — where  forty  millions 
of  African  negroes  shall  require  garments  of  this 
voluminous  character. 

Shunga  was  the  last  of  the  trading  stations  in  the 
track  of  the  expedition.  Mr.  Thompson  now  anti- 
cipated, being  quite  beyond  the  pale  of  civilization, 
"  stirring  times."  He  got  them,  but  not  quite  of  the 
sort  he  had  calculated  on.  He  and  Mr.  Seago  were 
for  some  little  time  kept  remarkably  busy,  but  not 
by  adventures  with  wild  animals  and  wilder  natives, 
but  by  dissension  and  mutiny  among  his  own  men. 
From  threatening  to  murder  their  leaders,  several  of 


MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER.  335 

the  native  followers  actually  proceeded  to  the  attempt, 
and  in  one  instance  just  missed  being  successful. 
These  acts  of  rebellion  and  outrage  had,  of  course,  to 
be  met  with  the  sternest  remedies,  and  Mr.  Thompson 
and  Mr.  Seago  had  literally  to  fight  the  more  insub- 
ordinate of  their  men  hand  to  hand.  The  struggle 
for  final  mastery  was  a  desperate  one,  but  at  last 
victory  lay  with  the  white  men ;  and  their  swarthy 
antagonists  were  taught  that  respect  for  their  leaders 
without  which  such  an  expedition  as  Mr.  Thompson 
had  in  hand  must  inevitably  end  in  shipwreck. 

The  journey  now  led  almost  due  north  as  far  as 
Kontokora.  Fresh  hardships  soon  overtook  the  little 
party.  One  of  Mr.  Thompson's  comrades,  who  was  in 
front  with  an  advance  guard,  broke  his  leg,  and  had 
to  be  sent  back ;  supplies  of  food  were  difficult  to 
be  obtained,  through  the  obstinacy  of  native  chiefs ; 
and  lastly,  a  terrific  tornado  broke  over  the  camp. 
The  tents  were  wrecked,  and  in  the  confusion  and 
dreadful  darkness  which  accompanied  the  storm  the 
horses  took  fright  and  broke  away  from  their  fasten- 
ings. Day  dawned  to  find  the  party  in  the  most 
miserable  case.  A  dozen  porters  and  half  the  horse- 
boys had  deserted ;  and  with  their  numerical  strength 
thus  diminished,  and  after  much  delay  in  recapturing 
the  horses,  the  expedition  again  moved  forward. 

A  halt  was  made  towards  noon,  and  aid  was  pro- 
cured at  Bukani  for  the  more  exhausted  of  the  natives. 


336  MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER. 

The  expedition  had  marched  all  the  morning  fasting, 
and  all  were  at  the  end  of  their  physical  resources. 
Food  was  now  obtained,  however,  and  the  night  was 
passed  in  the  midst  of  a  second  furious  tornado. 
Next  day  the  outlook  did  not  brighten.  The  men, 
wearied  by  the  march  and  exhausted  from  insufficient 
food,  again  showed  signs  of  mutiny.  They  declared 
that  unless  they  were  provided  with  fish  and  rice  they 
would  give  up  the  march.  To  procure  rice  and  fish 
was  a  difficult  and  expensive  matter.  The  Brassmen 
were  those  who  were  most  unreasonable  in  their 
demands  and  most  obstinate  in  their  refusal  to  work. 
These  were  finally  told  that  they  might  desert  if  they 
cared  or  dared.  They  did  not  dare,  for  retreat  had 
now  more  risk  in  it  than  advance.  Next  morning 
the  remainder  of  the  horse-boys  deserted,  and  Mr. 
Thompson  and  Mr.  Seago  had  now  to  be  their  own 
grooms. 

Every  day  matters  looked  more  gloomy.  Food 
continued  to  be  difficult  to  procure,  and  the  rebellious 
spirit  in  the  camp  broke  out  again  and  again.  Much 
to  the  regret  and  chagrin  of  Mr.  Thompson,  his  work 
at  this  time  was  little  better  than  that  of  a  slave- 
driver.  But  it  was  either  this  or  a  total  abandonment 
of  the  expedition  and  inglorious  retreat  to  the  coast. 

Amid  these  many  and  various  harassments  and 
annoyances,  Mr.  Thompson  was  nevertheless  not  en- 
tirely without  solace.      On  the  whole  the  march  itself 


MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER.  337 

was  not  a  difficult  or  toilsome  one,  but  led  by  winding 
ways  through  pine  forest  land,  thickly  set  with  shea- 
butter  trees.  Everywhere  the  vegetation  was  of 
tropical  wealth,  and  lush-green  in  its  luxuriance ;  the 
vivid  emeralds  varied,  however,  by  tints  of  gold  and 
copper,  like  an  English  autumn  coppice.  Neither  was 
water  wanting  to  complete  the  landscape — bright 
streams  bubbling  through  the  forest  alleys,  about 
whose  marge  the  palm-oil  trees  clustered  in  shady 
clumps.  Large  towns  in  complete  ruin  were  here  and 
there  passed,  and  now  and  then  a  clearing.  If  the 
reader  will  turn  back  upon  these  pages,  he  will  find 
Clapperton  making  mention  of  cities,  with  populations 
of  tens  of  thousands,  scattered  about  the  same  region 
of  Northern  Nupe ;  and  Mr.  Thompson,  beholding 
these  ruins,  could  not  but  reflect  on  their  lost  pros- 
perity with  sadness.  For  then  this  land  was  a  rich 
and  bountiful  one,  and  the  peoples  of  these  ruined 
towns  enjoyed  life  after  their  own  rude  free  fashion, 
with  feast,  song,  and  dance.  Civil  war  has  wrought 
the  miserable  change,  and  the  populations  of  these 
once  flourishing  towns  are  dead,  or  worse — sold  into 
slavery.  Everywhere  Mr.  Thompson  saw  the  wreck 
of  what  had  once  been  fertile  fields.  Since  his 
journey,  let  it  be  added,  Nupe'  has  been  placed  under 
a  British  protectorate,  and  its  people  may  now  expect 
at  least  immunity  from  their  oppressors. 

As  the  expedition  drew  near  Kontokora,  which  is 

(94)  22 


338  MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER. 

a  considerable  town,  Mr.  Thompson  and  Mr.  Seago 
advanced  to  the  front.  Presently  strains  of  wild 
music  fell  upon  their  ears — the  music  of  pipes  and 
trumpets  and  tom-toms.  Then  a  company  of  horse- 
men were  seen — Filianis  who  had  ridden  forth  to 
meet  the  strangers.  With  a  wild  shout,  the  horsemen 
bore  down  upon  the  white  men,  each  cavalier  brandish- 
ing aloft  his  spear,  and  all  gorgeously  arrayed  in 
Oriental  fashion,  with  trappings  of  leather,  cloth,  and 
brass,  and  turbans  of  the  most  voluminous  description. 
So  warlike  was  the  appearance  of  these  Filiani  cavalry, 
that  Mr.  Thompson  at  first  judged  their  intentions  to 
be  hostile ;  but  this  was  only  the  national  manner  of 
salute.  Two  venerable  old  men  were  now  beheld 
seated  beneath  a  tree,  to  whom  the  white  men,  con- 
cluding them  to  be  persons  of  degree,  advanced,  and 
were  received  with  much  ceremony  and  many  compli- 
ments. Amid  a  renewed  uproar  of  shouting,  and 
music  of  the  pipes  and  tom-toms,  Mr.  Thompson  was 
then  conducted  to  Kontokora.  Crowds  lined  the 
streets  to  witness  the  advent  of  the  white  men  whose 
coming  was  expected,  and  amid  a  surprising  show  of 
state  and  pomp  the  strangers  were  escorted  to  the 
house  which  had  been  prepared  for  their  reception, 
and  where  an  abundant  feast  had  been  spread  for 
their  refreshment.  This  hospitable  reception  inspired 
Mr.  Thompson  with  the  hope  that  the  worst  of  his 
difficulties  were  over, 


MB.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER.  341 

After  staying  two  days  at  Kontokora,  the  march 
was  resumed  in  a  north-westerly  direction,  and  the 
Niger  was  again  struck  near  the  Boussa  Falls,  the  spot, 
our  reader  may  remember,  where  Park  met  his  death. 
The  course  of  the  river  was  followed  as  far  as  its 
tributary  the  Gulbi-n-Gindi,  along  which  the  ex- 
pedition then  proceeded.  Here  Mr.  Thompson  was 
struck  down  with  severe  sickness,  which  was  like  to 
end  seriously,  had  not  the  course  of  the  malady  at 
last  yielded  to  the  treatment  before  reaching  the  most 
acute  stage.  He  had  hardly  recovered  from  this 
illness  when  a  desperate  attempt  was  made  on  his  life 
by  one  of  his  men,  happily  rendered  unsuccessful  by 
the  prompt  assistance  of  Mr.  Seago.  After  this  the 
mutinous  spirit,  which  had  so  often  broken  out  in  the 
camp,  died  away.  Awed  at  length  by  the  firm,  un- 
yielding front  presented  by  the  white  men,  the  natives 
"  caved  in,"  and  henceforth  obedience  and  order  were 
maintained  among  Kruboys  and  Brassmen. 

The  most  important  town  on  the  Gulbi-n-Gindi  is 
Jega,  a  large  trade  centre,  where  converge  "  the  main 
lines  of  commerce  from  the  countries  to  the  south, 
especially  Nupe"  and  Yoruba."  At  Jega,  a  place 
which  was  full  of  interest  for  Mr.  Thompson,  he  could 
only  remain  one  day.  On  the  following  the  camp 
again  took  the  road,  striking  westward  for  Sokoto. 
It  was  now  towards  the  close  of  the  dry  season,  all 
surrounding  nature  showed  every  sign  of  long  drought, 


342  MB.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER. 

and  the  barren  land  and  the  fierce  sun  rendered  the 
march  difficult  and  painful.  The  land  was  not  entirely 
treeless,  however — fan-palms,  bas-bats,  and  dum-palms 
springing  up  here  and  there  in  the  otherwise  sterile 
waste.  The  aspect  of  the  country  was  different,  in 
many  essentials,  from  that  through  which  Mr.  Thomp- 
son's journey  had  hitherto  lain.  No  traces  of  civil 
war  were  anywhere  manifest,  no  trackless  forests,  the 
home  of  wild  beasts  only,  no  malarious  swamps  and 
fever-haunted  marshes.  The  earth,  broken  on  every 
hand  by  furrow-marks,  clearly  showed  that  it  was 
annually  cultivated.  Presently,  too,  numerous  villages 
were  met  with,  each  containing  some  two  or  three 
thousand  inhabitants.  These  hamlets  were  snugly 
enough  built,  the  roofs  of  the  huts  being  of  a  conical 
shape,  the  houses  themselves  being  invariably  shaded 
by  trees. 

The  road  now  presented  a  busy  scene  of  traffic  and 
general  activity.  Abundant  signs  of  commerce  met 
the  travellers ;  camels,  donkeys,  bullocks,  and  horses, 
all  heavily  laden,  maintaining  an  endless  stream  along 
the  highways.  Filiani  horsemen,  looking  very  im- 
posing in  their  picturesque  and  voluminous  dress, 
ambled  past,  followed  by  numerous  attendants,  some 
on  horseback,  some  on  foot.  Bringing  up  the  rear 
came  the  ladies  of  the  harem,  veiled  to  the  eyes  from 
the  vulgar  sight — a  merciful  provision  for  the  European 
traveller,  Mr.  Thompson  hints,  for  he  is  thus  spared 


MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER.  345 

the  sight  of  some  very  plain  faces.  The  people  who 
struck  Mr.  Thompson  as  the  most  picturesque  of  any 
which  he  met  in  the  Soudan  were  the  Tuareg  of 
Asben,  who,  clad,  if  such  a  word  could  be  applied  to 
them,  in  a  very  wreck  of  tatters  and  rags,  contrived 
to  fold  their  dirty  and  squalid  garments  around  them 
with  a  wonderful  picturesqueness,  and  to  group  them- 
selves in  graceful  and  artistic  attitudes. 

The  religious  fervour  of  the  races  among  which  Mr. 
Thompson  was  now  sojourning  was  manifest  on  every 
hand.  Everywhere  by  the  roadside  "  praying-places  " 
were  built — little  niches  facing  Mecca-wards — where 
the  faithful  disciples  of  Mohammed  might  at  any  time 
worship  their  prophet. 

On  May  21st  the  important  city  of  Sokoto  was 
approached.  Here  Mr.  Thompson  anticipated  a  cere- 
monious reception ;  to  be  worthy  of  which  he  and 
Mr.  Seago  arrayed  themselves  in  their  most  gorgeous 
attire.  The  leader  of  the  expedition  made  himself 
gorgeous  in  a  parti-coloured  singlet  of  silk  and  wool, 
white  ducks,  canvas  gaiters,  and  puggaree-enveloped 
helmet;  while  Mr.  Seago  was  got  up  in  pyjamas,  white 
jacket,  helmet  and  gaiters.  What  was  the  particular 
significance  of  the  gaiters — an  uncomfortable  article 
in  a  warm  climate — Mr.  Thompson  does  not  tell  us, 
but  they  were  probably  donned  with  an  eye  to  some 
possible  effect  on  the  native  mind. 

At  first  the  reception  of  the  travellers  at  Sokoto 


346  MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER. 

was  the  reverse  of  what  had  been  looked  for;  but  this, 
they  presently  heard,  was  due  to  the  circumstance  that 
their  guide  had  been  procured  from  an  enemy  of  the 
governor.  Before  long,  Mr.  Thompson  and  his  com- 
panions were  provided  with  an  abundance  of  food,  both 
cooked  and  uncooked,  by  the  leading  men  of  the  city. 
On  the  day  following  his  arrival  at  Sokoto,  and 
while  messengers  were  on  their  way  to  the  sultan, 
Mr.  Thompson  employed  the  time  in  taking  photo- 
graphs. He  was  thus  drawn  into  an  adventure,  dis- 
agreeable in  its  details,  and  coming  very  near  to  being 
disastrous  in  its  consequences.  The  traveller  set  up 
his  camera  in  the  market-place,  then  in  the  full  tide 
of  trade,  with  an  uproar  filling  the  air  from  some  tens 
of  thousands  of  bargaining  and  disputing  traders. 
None  of  these  people  had  ever  seen  a  white  man 
before,  and  when  one  came  armed  with  so  curious  a 
looking  instrument  as  a  photographic  camera,  it  is 
little  to  be  wondered  at  that  the  crowd  took  fright  at 
the  phenomenon.  The  throng  pressed  closer  and 
closer  about  Mr.  Thompson ;  cries  arose  which  pres- 
ently swelled  into  a  deafening  shout,  every  moment 
growing  angrier  and  more  excited.  The  camera  very 
nearly  came  to  grief.  The  incensed  and  agitated  mob 
pressed  on ;  the  market  stalls  were  knocked  over,  and 
their  contents  scattered  on  the  ground.  Sheep,  goats, 
cattle,  and  camels,  got  loose,  and  rushing  about  among 
the  crowd,  made  confusion  thrice  confounded ;  and  in 


MR    THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER.  349 

the  midst  of  this  extraordinary  scene  of  panic  and 
uproar  the  white  men,  for  a  little,  fared  very  badly. 
At  last  they  succeeded  in  pushing  their  way  through 
the  throng  and  getting  free  of  the  market-place. 
The  people  had  got  it  into  their  heads  that  the  photo- 
graphic apparatus  was  an  instrument  of  witchcraft, 
and  that  Mr.  Thompson's  intention  was  to  exercise  its 
powers  upon  them. 

On  the  following  day  the  travellers  presented 
themselves  before  the  sultan  Umuru  Serki-n-Musulmia. 
Passing  through  a  court  and  passage,  they  were  escorted 
to  a  massively-built,  flat-roofed  edifice,  in  front  of 
which  stood  an  elevated  throne  of  mud.  Here  sat, 
cross-legged  and  robed  in  a  mantle  broidered  with 
gold  thread,  the  sultan  himself.  Nothing  of  his  face 
was  visible  except  a  pair  of  flashing  eyes ;  and  so 
motionless  did  Umuru  sit  that  he  looked  most  like  a 
figure  of  a  Buddhist  god. 

Elaborate  salutations  having  passed  between  the 
sultan  and  the  white  men,  followed  by  a  series  of 
endless  interrogations  on  Umuru's  part,  they  at  last 
came  to  business,  and  Mr.  Thompson  detailed  the 
object  of  his  mission.  First  he  thanked  the  sultan 
for  the  friendly  spirit  he  had  always  displayed  towards 
English  traders  on  the  river,  and  begged  to  present 
a  small  token  of  their  appreciation  of  the  monarch's 
kindness.  The  Englishmen  were  desirous  of  entering 
into  a  treaty  with  Umuru,  whereby  the  relations  be- 


350  MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER. 

tween  the  two  might  be  placed  upon  a  proper  footing 
and  strengthened  by  every  means  possible.  In  this  way 
great  commercial  and  other  advantages  would  accrue, 
not  only  to  the  English  traders,  but  in  an  equal  degree 
to  the  sultan. 

To  all  Mr.  Thompson's  arguments  Umuru  listened 
with  close  attention  and  marked  signs  of  approval ; 
greatly,  of  course,  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  former. 
At  the  conclusion  of  the  white  man's  speech  the 
sultan  expressed  himself  delighted  at  the  idea  of  being 
brought  into  closer  communication  with  England  and 
Englishmen ;  and  at  this  point  Mr.  Thompson  deemed 
it  politic  to  clinch  matters  by  displaying  the  presents 
he  had  brought  for  the  negro  monarch's  acceptance. 
These  were  accordingly  brought  on  the  evening  of  the 
same  day,  and  proved  to  be  of  the  most  varied  and  gor- 
geous description.  At  first  Umuru  affected  to  contem- 
plate the  white  men's  gift  with  a  dignified  calm;  but  this 
presently  broke  down  utterly  as  the  magnificence  of 
the  present — costly  beyond  his  utmost  expectation — 
became  fully  realized.  Beautiful  fabrics  in  satin, 
silk,  and  velvet,  gorgeous  embroideries,  rugs,  silver- 
mounted  fire-arms,  silver  cups,  etc.,  and  all  of  the 
finest  workmanship,  were  displayed  before  his  delighted 
eyes;  and  lastly,  a  wonderful  silk  umbrella,  of  the  largest 
dimensions  and  deeply  fringed  with  gold  cord,  took  com- 
plete possession  of  the  royal  heart,  and  Umuru  gave  vent 
to  the  liveliest  expressions  of  his  surprise  and  pleasure. 


MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER.  351 

On  the  following  day  Mr.  Thompson  presented  the 
treaty  with  which  he  was  charged  to  the  sultan,  for 
his  consideration  and  approval.  This  document  showed 
forth  how  "  concessions  and  grants  must  be  made  on 
the  one  hand,  if  wealth  and  increased  influence  and 
power  were  to  be  secured  on  the  other."  Umuru 
considered  all  the  proposals  contained  in  the  treaty 
with  more  than  readiness,  and  finally  signed  the 
document  with  alacrity.  Mr.  Thompson's  enterprise 
was  thus  brought  to  a  successful  termination  with  a 
greater  degree  of  ease  and  expedition  than  he  had 
ever  allowed  himself  to  hope.  Handsome  presents 
were  made  to  the  chief  men  belonging  to  the  sultan's 
court,  and  Mr.  Thompson  left  Sokoto  for  Gandu  to 
negotiate  a  second  treaty  there. 

While  sojourning  in  the  Central  Soudan,  Mr.  Thomp- 
son found  leisure  in  the  midst  of  his  commercial 
negotiations  to  note  the  many  novel  and  curious 
sights  that  hourly  presented  themselves  before  him. 
All  these  were  of  an  exceedingly  interesting  character, 
the  "  negro  empires  of  the  Soudan  being  so  unique  and 
remarkable  in  their  various  characteristics  that  one  is 
kept  in  a  continual  state  of  surprise,  not  less  by  what 
is  indigenous  than  by  what  is  foreign  and  imported 
from  North  Africa." 

Mr.  Thompson  was,  as  has  been  indicated,  the  agent 
of  the  African  Company  during  the  expedition  which 


352  MB.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER. 

we  have  just  sketched.  It  will  therefore  be  germane 
to  our  subject  if  we  give  here  a  brief  summary  of  the 
work  and  aims  of  the  African  Company,  or,  as  it  is 
now  called,  the  "  National  African  Company." 

In  1829  the  course  of  the  Lower  Niger  had  been 
followed  into  the  Gulf  of  Guinea,  and  in  that  year 
it  seemed  as  if  a  new  history  awaited  the  Central 
Soudan,  which  had  up  to  this  date  been  barred  to 
European  mercantile  enterprise.  But  for  thirty  years 
all  attempts  to  establish  commercial  relations  with 
this  region  proved  fruitless.  Life  and  money  were 
freely  spent  in  the  enterprise,  in  every  case  with  dis- 
astrous results.  Then  the  British  Government  with- 
drew all  official  help  in  the  matter,  and  the  adven- 
ture fell  into  private  hands.  One  firm  after  another 
planted  trading  depots  along  the  Niger,  and  the 
pioneer  work  was  carried  on  by  various  leaders,  not- 
able among  whom  was  Mr.  James  Croft,  once  known 
as  the  "  Father  of  the  Niger."  Nevertheless  security 
of  life  and  property  was  not  as  yet  assured,  and  it 
was  felt  by  all  interested  in  the  enterprise  that  some 
kind  of  political  organization  was  needed  to  secure  this. 

In  the  days  antecedent  to  the  establishment  of  the 
private  trading  stations  above  referred  to,  all  the 
region  of  Central  Africa  with  which  we  are  dealing 
was  the  arena  of  continual  inter-tribal  warfare  and 
slave  raids ;  and  when  to  this  is  added  the  circumstance 
that  the  various  British  firms  were  brought  into  fre- 


MR,  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER.  353 

quent  rivalry,  and  that  there  was  the  want  of  anything 
like  unity  of  action  among  the  white  traders,  it  can 
easily  be  understood  how  progress  was  slow  and  un- 
satisfactory. But  in  1879  all  the  British  interests  on 
the  Niger  joined  their  forces,  and  the  "United  African 
Company "  was  the  result.  One  leading  feature  in 
the  plan  of  action  of  the  new  company  was  the  en- 
deavour to  unite  the  numerous  heterogeneous  tribes 
into  one  compact  whole.  It  was  resolved  at  the 
same  time  that  the  company  should  interfere  as  little 
as  possible  with  the  merely  internal  affairs  of  each 
separate  tribe.  The  company  proved  successful  both 
in  a  political  and  in  a  financial  view.  Its  objects 
were  political  and  commercial  development,  the  former 
as  a  means  to  the  latter ;  the  endeavour  to  effect  this 
development  by  the  agency  of  a  single  company,  so  as 
to  avoid  intrigue  and  rivalry  ;  and  to  bring  the  empires 
of  Gandu  and  Sokoto  into  immediate  relations  with 
the  company,  and  thus  in  time  include  the  territories 
of  the  Tchad  basin  within  the  company's  operations. 

In  1882  the  British  Government  granted  the  com- 
pany a  royal  charter,  and  its  name  now  became  the 
"  National  African  Company."  The  enterprise  re- 
ceived a  marked  stimulus  from  the  grant  of  the  char- 
ter— new  steamers  and  launches  were  built,  new  depots 
established,  while  small  stations  became  large  and  im- 
portant ones.  Thus  the  company  prospered,  until  two 
French  houses  took  up  the  ground,  and  entered  into 

(94)  23 


354  MR,   THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER. 

rivalry  with  it.  Had  their  opponents  confined  them- 
selves to  purely  commercial  work,  the  African  Com- 
pany could  have  had  no  reason  for  complaint.  But 
this  the  French  houses  did  not  do.  They  used  every 
endeavour  to  secure  political  influence  over  the  native 
princes ;  and  a  scheme  was  set  on  foot,  under  the 
auspices  of  M.  Gambetta,  for  welding  Tunis,  Algeria, 
Senegal,  the  Central  Soudan,  and  the  Lower  Niger 
into  a  Franco- African  empire.  The  idea  was  a  suf- 
ficiently comprehensive  one,  and  whatever  its  practical 
results  might  have  been,  it  would  have  effected  this  at 
least — namely,  the  death-blow  of  the  National  African 
Company.  The  French  operations  on  the  Niger  con- 
tinued to  develop,  and  had  now  to  be  met  by  greatly 
increased  activity,  and  a  large  outlay  of  money  on  the 
part  of  the  company.  It  was  clear  that  the  two  rival 
parties  could  not  exist  side  by  side,  and  the  African 
Company  was  resolved  that  it  should  not  be  the  one 
to  go  to  the  wall.  This  region  was  indebted  in  every 
way  to  British  enterprise  and  British  money,  and  no 
one  can  wonder  at  the  position  which  the  company 
took  up  in  the  circumstances.  The  struggle  was  a 
sharp  one,  but  in  the  end  the  older  company  was  left 
master  of  the  situation.  One  of  the  two  French 
houses  disappeared  from  the  scene,  while  the  other 
became  absorbed  in  the  English  company.  But  now  a 
new  danger  arose  for  the  African  Company.  Germany 
conceived  the  idea  of  colonization,  for  the  first  time  in 


MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER.  355 

her  history.  At  this  time  there  existed  in  Germany 
a  feeling  strongly  antagonistic  to  England,  and  it  was 
probably  altogether  congenial  to  the  nation  that  it 
should  endeavour  to  press  forward  colonizing  opera- 
tions in  Africa.  Into  the  fresh  struggle  which  thus 
arose  the  African  Company  threw  itself  with  great 
vigour,  despatching  Mr.  Thompson  as  its  envoy  to  the 
Niger,  as  has  been  described  in  these  pages.  Mr. 
Thompson  was  successful  in  concluding  treaties  with 
no  less  than  two  hundred  and  thirty -five  native  chiefs, 
as  well  as  with  the  Mohammedan  empires  of  Gandu 
and  Sokoto. 

The  National  African  Company  has  been  able  to 
maintain,  with  little  or  no  loss  of  life  by  violence 
and  small  loss  of  property,  from  fifty  to  one  hundred 
establishments,  scattered  among  dense  populations 
which  now  engage  in  amicable  barter  with  the  com- 
pany, where  they  would  have  once  thought  nothing 
of  resorting  to  force.  This  is  in  itself  a  very  notable 
achievement.  Out  of  very  rude  and  barbarous  ma- 
terial the  company  has  formed  a  fairly  peaceful  and 
orderly  state ;  and  this  not  by  force  of  arms,  but  by 
the  legitimate  arts  of  commerce.  That  it  has  gained 
the  confidence  of  the  native  races  is  sufficiently  indi- 
cated by  the  fact  that  they  have  continually  referred 
their  inter-tribal  disputes  to  the  judication  of  the  com- 
pany, and  that  the  native  princes  have  been  found 
ready  to  surrender  their  sovereign  powers  to  the  com- 


356  MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER. 

pany.  A  large  majority  of  the  chiefs  have  now, 
through  their  relations  with  the  company,  the  ambi- 
tion of  honestly  earning  their  own  livelihood,  instead 
of  engaging,  as  formerly,  in  unrestricted  plunder,  war, 
and  slave-raids.  Thus  has  commercial  enterprise  been 
used  as  a  distinctly  civilizing  agent  among  the  peoples 
of  the  Niger. 

Here  our  "  Story  of  the  Niger "  ends.  We  have 
traced  for  you,  kind  reader,  the  history  of  the  great 
river  from  the  days  before  Park  down  to  the  present 
moment :  we  followed  that  great  pioneer  of  travel  in 
Central  Africa  through  the  various  stages  of  his 
memorable  journey ;  and  we  have  accompanied  Clap- 
perton  and  the  Landers  on  their  adventurous  and 
notable  expeditions ;  we  have  noted  what  valuable 
additions  to  our  knowledge  of  the  mighty  river 
Barth's  explorations  yielded ;  we  have  gone  with 
Captain  Gallieni  in  his  spirited  mission ;  and  with  Mr. 
Joseph  Thompson's  interesting  and  successful  journey 
the  record  in  the  meantime  closes.  Other  travellers 
will  doubtless  follow  Mr.  Thompson,  and  in  a  few 
years'  time  a  new  Story  of  the  Niger  may  have  to  be 
told.  But  it  must  necessarily  be  a  story  of  a  different 
kind  from  that  which  has  been  given  in  these  pages — 
that  is,  it  must  become  less  and  less  a  story  of  adven- 
ture and  peril,  and  toil  and  death,  and  more  and  more 
a  record  of  commercial  enterprise  and  the  spread  of 


MR.  THOMPSON  ON  THE  NIGER.  357 

civilization.  Every  year  the  Niger  is  becoming  less 
and  less  the  great  river  of  mystery  and  darkness 
which  it  was  to  the  early  explorers.  The  days  of 
Park  and  Clapperton  and  the  Landers  can  never  return, 
as  far  as  the  Niger  is  concerned.  This  is  a  loss  to  the 
adventurer  and  the  sportsman — to  all  those  who  in 
past  times  have  regarded  the  Niger  as  a  happy  hunt- 
ing-ground and  a  prolific  birthplace  of  surprising 
adventures — but  to  the  world  at  large,  let  us  hope,  a 
gain.  We  close  with  the  earnest  hope  that  the 
ascendency  and  authority,  the  power  and  the  prestige, 
which  England  has  secured  on  the  Niger,  may  be 
exercised  to  all  wise  and  just  issues ;  that  our  com- 
mercial dealings  with  these  poor,  semi  -  barbarous 
peoples  of  Western  and  Central  Africa,  while  stimulat- 
ing and  extending  British  industry  and  merchant 
enterprise,  may  be  marked  by  no  policy,  by  no  single 
act,  that  shall  leave  a  stain  upon  our  name  and 
honour. 


THE     END. 


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for  young  readers. 


In  the  Bush  and  on  the  Trail. 
Adventures  in  the  Forests  of 
North  America.  A  Book  for 
Boys.  By  M.  Benedict  Revoil. 
With  70  Illustrations.  Post  8vo, 
cloth  extra.     Price  3s.  6d. 

A  very  interesting  translation  from  the 
work  of  a  French  traveller.  Much  valu- 
able information  given  regarding  natural 
history  and  scenery  in  an  attractive  form, 
along  with  beautiful  engravings. 

The  Lake  Regions  of  Central 
Africa.  A  Record  of  Modern 
Discovery.  By  John  Geddie, 
F.  R.  G.  S.  With  32  Illustrations. 
Post  8vo,  cloth  extra.     3s.  6d. 

Contents.— Introductory  and  His- 
torical— The  Nile — The  White  Nile  and 
tfie  Albert  Nyanza — The  Ultimate  Nile 
Sources — The  Congo — Tanganyika — The 
Lualaba  Lakes — Cataracts — The  Zambesi 
from  Lake  Dilolo  to  Lake  Ngami — The 
Victoria  Falls  and  the  Lower  Zambesi 
— Tlie  Shire"  and  Lake  Nyassa. 

Lost  in  the  Backwoods.  A  Tale 
of  the  Canadian  Forest.  By  Mrs. 
Tkaill,  Author  of  "In  the  For- 
est," etc.  With  32  Engravings. 
Post  8vo,  cloth  extra.     3s.  6d. 

This  story  was  many  years  since  pub- 
lished under  the  title  of"  The  Canadian 
Crusoes."  It  abounds  with  incidents  of 
romantic  adventure,  and  with  attractive 
and  interesting  descriptions.  In  its  «ew 
form  it  is  sure  to  become  a  favourite  with 
the  young  people  of  the  present  day. 

The  Meadows  Family ;  or,  Fire- 
side Stories  of  Adventure  and 
Enterprise.  By  M.  A.  Paull, 
Author  of  "Tim's  Troubles,"  etc. 
With  Illustrations.  Post  8vo, 
cloth  extra,  gold  and  colours. 
Price  3s.  6d. 

A  book  of  fascinating  descriptions  and 
incidents,  taken  from  authentic  records 
of  travel  and  adventure  in  wild,  pictur- 
esque regions. 


T.    NELSON   AND   SONS,    LONDON,    EDINBURGH,    AND   NEW   YORK. 


Pictures  of  Travel  in  Many  Lands. 


The  Amazon  and  its  Wonders. 
With  Illustrations  of  Animal  Life 
in  the  Amazonian  Forest.  28 
Engravings.  Post  8vo,  cloth  ex- 
tra.    Price  2s. 

A  history  of  this  great  river  and  the 
regions  through  which  it  flows,  from  the 
earliest  historical  notices  in  the  year  1500 
to  the  accounts  of  recent  explorers. 

California  and  its  Wonders.  By 
the  Rev.  John  Todd,  D.D.  New 
Edition,  carefully  Revised  and 
brought  down  to  the  present 
time.  17  Engravings.  Post  8vo, 
cloth  extra.     Price  2s. 

Full  of  interesting  and  instructive 
matter.  The  engravings  well  depict  the 
natural  wonders  described  in  the  text. 

The  Euphrates  and  the  Tigris. 
A  Narrative  of  Discovery  and 
Adventure.  With  a  Description 
of  the  Ruins  of  Babylon  and 
Nineveh.  18  Engravings.  Post 
8vo,  cloth  extra.     Price  2s. 

A  narrative  of  modern  discoveries  in 
the  lands  of  Babylon  and  Nineveh ;  the 
excavations  by  Layard,  the  inscriptions 
deciphered  by  Smith,  etc.,  etc. 
Famous  Caverns  and  Grottoes. 
Described  and  Illustrated.  By 
W.  H.  Davenport  Adams.  With 
38  Illustrations.  Post  8vo,  cloth 
extra.     Price  2s. 

An  interesting  volume,  beautifully  il- 
lustrated, describing  the  most  remarkable 
caverns  and  grottoes  of  our  globe  under 
five  classes:  —  those  of  volcanic  origin, 
those  excavated  by  water,  stalactite  caves, 
ice  caves,  and  caves  full  of  fossil  remains. 
Famous  Caves  and  Catacombs. 
Described  and  Illustrated.  By 
W.  H.  Davenport  Adams.  With 
40  Illustrations.  Post  8vo,  cloth 
extra.     Price  2s. 

A  beautiful  volume,  containing  a  mass 
of  information  and  description  regarding 
the  ancient  cave-temples  of  Egypt  and 
Hindostan,  the  grottoes  and  caverns  of 
Greece  and  Italy,  and  the  catacombs  of 
Rome  and  Paris.  With  many  illustra- 
tions from  drawings  or  photographs. 


The  French  in  Indo-China.  With 
33  Engravings.  Post  8vo,  cloth 
extra.     Price  2s. 

A  narrative  of  Garnier's  explorations 
and  adventures  in  Cochin-China,  Cam- 
bodia, Laos,  and  Siam,  with  a  history  of 
the  origin  of  the  French  colony  in  Cochin- 
China,  and  an  account  of  the  events 
which  resulted  in  the  recent  difficulties 
between  China  and  France. 

Gibraltar  and  its  Sieges.  With 
a  Description  of  its  Natural  Fea- 
tures. 18  Engravings.  Post  8vo, 
cloth  extra.     Price  2s. 

A  new  account  of  the  great  Rock-Foi  - 
tress,  carefully  prepared  and  illustrated. 
The  celebrated  work  by  Colonel  Drink- 
water,  on  the  siege  in  1782,  is  largely 
made  use  of,  and  several  of  his  plates  are 
given  in  facsimile  on  a  reduced  scale. 

In  the  Forest ;  or,  Pictures  of 
Life  and  Scenery  in  the  Wilds  of 
Canada.  By  Mrs.  Traill,  Au- 
thor of  "Lost  in  the  Backwoods," 
etc.  With  numerous  Illustra- 
tions. Post  8vo,  cloth  extra.  2s. 
Contains  much  pleasant  information, 
and  many  interesting  anecdotes  regarding 
the  plants  and  animals  of  Canada,  and 
some  lively  details  of  Indian  life. 

Round  the  World.  A  Story  of 
Travel  compiled  from  the  Narra- 
tive of  Ida  Pfeiffer.  By  D. 
Murray  Smith.  36  Engravings. 
Post  8vo,  cloth  extra.     Price  2s. 

Madame  Pfeiffer' s  great  powers  of  ob- 
servation enabled  her  well  to  describe  all 
that  was  striking  and  pleasing  connected 
with  the  people  and  countries  through 
which  she  passed. 

Madame  Ida  Pfeiffer.  The  Story 
of  Ida  Pfeiffer,  and  Her  Travels 
in  Many  Lands.  25  Engravings. 
Post  8vo,  cloth  extra.     Price  2s. 

A  new  biography  of  this  remarkable 
lady,  the  boldest  of  female  travellers, 
who,  with  daring  such  as  no  woman  had 
ever  shown  before,  ventured  alone  into 
savage  lands,  studying  the  manners  and 
customs  of  their  inhabitant. 


T.  NELSON  AND  SONS,  LONDON,  EDINBURGH,  AND  NEW  YORK. 


Travel  and  Adventure. 


Jack  Hooper.  His  Adventures  at 
Sea  and  in  South  Africa.  By 
Verney  Lovett  Cameron,  C.B., 
D.C.L. ,  Commander  Royal  Navy; 
Author  of  "Across  Africa,"  "Our 
Future  Highway,"  etc.  With  23 
Full-page  Illustrations.  Crown 
8vo,  cloth  extra,  gilt  edges.  5s. 
"Our  author  has  the  immense  advan- 
tage over  many  writers  of  boys'  stories 
that  he  describes  wliat  lie  lias  seen,  and 
does  not  merely  draw  on  his  imagination 
and  on  books."— Scotsman. 

With  Pack  and  Rifle  in  the  Far 
South  -  West.  Adventures  in 
New  Mexico,  Arizona,  and 
Central  America.  By  Achilles 
Daunt,  Author  of  "Frank  Red- 
cliffe,"  "  In  the  Land  of  the 
Moose,  the  Bear,  and  the  Beaver," 
"The  Three  Trappers,"  etc. 
With  30  Illustrations.  Crown 
8vo,  cloth  extra,  gilt  edges.  5s. 
A  delightful  book  of  travel  and  adven- 
ture, with  much  valuable  information  as 
to  the  geography  and  natural  history  of 
the  wild  American  "Far  West." 

The    Eastern  Archipelago.      By 

the  Author  of  "  The  Arctic 
World,"  "Recent  Polar  Voy- 
ages," etc.  With  60  Engravings 
and  a  Map.  Crown  8vo,  cloth 
extra,  gilt  edges.     Price  5s. 

A  description  of  the  scenery,  animal 
and  vegetable  life,  people,  and  physical 
wonders  of  the  islands  in  the  Eastern 
Seas. 

Early  English  Voyagers  ;  or,  The 

Adventures  and  Discoveries  of 
Drake,  Cavendish,  and  Dampier. 
Numerous  Illustrations.  Crown 
8vo,  cloth  extra,  gilt  edges.  5s. 
The  title  of  this  work  describes  the  con- 
tents. It  is  a  handsome  volume,  which 
ivill  be  a  valuable  gift  for  young  persons 
generally,  and  boys  in  particular.  There 
are  included  many  interesting  illustra- 
tions and  portraits  of  the  three  great 
voyagers. 


Our  Sea  Coast  Heroes;  or,  Tales 
of  Wreck  and  of  Rescue  by  the 
Lifeboat  and  Rocket.  By  Achil- 
les Daunt,  Author  of  ' '  Frank 
Redcliffe,"  "  With  Pack  and 
Rifle  in  the  Far  South-West,"  etc. 
With  numerous  Illustrations. 
Post  8vo,  cloth  extra.     2s.  6d. 

The  Forest,  the  Jungle,  and  the 
Prairie ;  or,  Tales  of  Adventure 
and  Enterprise  in  Pursuit  of  Wild 
Animals.  With  numerous  En- 
gravings. Post  8vo,  cloth  extra. 
Price  2s.  6d. 

A  party  of  weather-bound  schoolboys 
are  here  supposed  to  relate  in  turn  the 
stories  that  form  the  book.  They  are  full 
of  romantic  adventure  and  deeds  of  dar- 
ing ;  but  at  the  same  time  they  are  true, 
and  cannot  be  read  without  imparting 
valuable  information  on  natural  history. 

Scenes  with  the  Hunter  and  the 
Trapper  in  Many  Lands.  Stories 
of  Adventures  with  Wild  Ani- 
mals. With  Engravings.  Post 
8vo,  cloth  extra.     Price  2s.  6d. 

A  party  of  school-boys  spend  some  of 
their  half-holidays  in  relating  to  one 
another  stories  of  adventure  in  search  of 
wild  animals.  These  stories,  though  often 
full  of  romantic  and  stirring  incidents, 
are  all  true.  They  cannot  fail  to  be 
attractive  to  young  readers. 

The  Swiss  Family  Robinson  ;  or, 

Adventures  of  a  Father  and  his 
Four  Sons  on  a  Desolate  Island. 
Illustrated.  Post  8vo,  cloth  ex- 
tra.    Price  2s.  6d. 

A  cheap  edition  of  this  well-known 
work.  As  the  title  suggests,  its  character 
is  somewhat  similar  to  that  of  the  famous 
"Robinson  Crusoe."  It  combines,  in  a 
high  degree,  the  two  desirable  qualities  in 
a  book, — instruction  and  amusement. 

Sandford  and  Merton.  A  Book 
for  the  Young.  By  Thomas  Day. 
Illustrated.  Post  8vo,  cloth  ex- 
tra.    Price  2s.  6d. 


T.    NELSON   AND   SONS,    LONDON,    EDINBURGH,    AND  NEW   YORK. 


R.  M.  Ballantyne's  Books  for  Boys. 


The  Coral  Island.  A  Tale  of  the 
Pacific.  With  Illustrations.  Post 
8vo,  cloth  extra.     Price  3s.  6d. 

The    Young    Fur  -  Traders  ;   or, 

Snowflakes  and  Sunbeams  from 
the  Far  North.  With  Illustra- 
tions. Post  8vo,  cloth  extra. 
Price  3s.  6d. 

The  World  of  Ice.  Adventures 
in  the  Polar  Regions.  With  Il- 
lustrations. Post  8vo,  cloth  ex- 
tra.    Price  3s.  6d. 

The  Gorilla  Hunters.  A  Tale  of 
the  Wilds  of  Africa.  With  Il- 
lustrations. Post  8vo,  cloth  ex- 
tra.    Price  3s.  6d. 

Martin  Rattler.  A  Boy's  Adven- 
tures in  the  Forests  of  Brazil. 
With  Illustrations.  Post  8vo, 
cloth  extra.     Price  3s.  6d. 

Ungava.  A  Tale  of  Esquimau 
Land.  With  Illustrations.  Post 
8vo,  cloth  extra.     Price  3s.  6d. 


The  Dog  Crusoe  and  his  Master. 
A  Story  of  Adventure  on  the 
Western  Prairies.  With  Illus- 
trations. Post  8vo,  cloth  extra. 
Price  3s.  6d. 

These  seven  lively  and  interesting  nar- 
ratives by  R.  M.  Ballantyne  form  a  com- 
plete repertory  of  good  reading  for  young 
people.  They  give  a  vivid  and  pictur- 
esque description  of  various  climes,  and 
depict  strange  adventures  in  many 
lands. 

Hudson  Bay  ;  or,  Everyday  Life 
in  the  Wilds  of  North  America, 
during  a  Six  Years'  Residence  in 
the  Territories  of  the  Hon.  Hud- 
son Bay  Company.  By  R.  M. 
Ballantyne.  With  29  Illustra- 
tions drawn  by  Bayard  and  other 
Artists,  from  Sketches  by  the 
Author.  Post  8vo,  cloth  extra. 
Price  3s.  6d. 

In  this  volume  much  useful  informa- 
tion is  communicated,  in  the  most  fasci- 
nating narrative  style,  about  everyday 
life  in  the  wilds  of  North  Ainerica. 


W.  H.  G.  Kingston's  Books  for  Boys. 


Afar  in  the  Forest.  With  41 
Full-page  Engravings.  Post  8vo, 
cloth  extra.     Price  3s.  6d. 

A  tale  of  settler  life  in  North  America, 
full  of  stirring  adventure. 

In  New  Granada  ;  or,  Heroes 
and  Patriots.  With  36  Full-page 
Engravings.  Post  8vo,  cloth  ex- 
tra.    Price  3s.  6d. 

A  narrative  of  some  of  the  episodes  of 
the  desperate  struggle  of  which  the  present 
Republic  of  New  Granada  was  the  scene, 
before  its  people  were  able  to  establish 
their  independence  of  Spain.  Descrip- 
tions of  the  scenery,  products,  and  social 
customs  of  the  country  are  intermixed 
with  the  stonj. 


In  the  Rocky  Mountains.  A  Tale 
of  Adventure.  With  41  Engrav- 
ings. Post  8vo,  cloth  extra. 
Price  3s.  6d. 

A  narrative  of  adventure  in  the  Far 
West.  Especially  adapted  to  the  taste 
and  delectation  of  youth,  with  numerous 
incidents  of  travel  and  amusing  stories, 
told  in  afresh  and  invigorating  style. 

Kingston's  Western  World.  Pic- 
turesque Sketches  of  Nature  and 
Natural  History  in  Northern  and 
Central  America.  With  86  En- 
gravings. By  W.  H.  G.  King- 
ston. Crown  Svo,  cloth  extra. 
Price  4s. 


T.    NELSON   AND   SONS,    LONDON,    EDINBURGH,    AND   NEW   YORK. 


W.  H.  Gr.  Kingston's  Books  for  Boys. 


In    the    Eastern   Seas;    or,   The 

Regions  of  the  Bird  of  Paradise. 
A  Tale  for  Boys.  With  111 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo,  gilt 
Price  6s. 


A  tale  of  voyage  and  adventure  among 
the  islands  of  the  Malay  Archipelago, 
with  descriptions  of  scenery  and  objects 
of  natural  history. 

In  the  Wilds  of  Africa.  With 
upwards  of  70  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo,  gilt  edges.  Price  6s. 
An  interesting  account  of  adventures 
by  a  shipwrecked  party  who  are  landed 
on  the  west  coast  of  Africa,  and  make 
their  way  to  the  south  through  many 
dangers. 

On  the  Banks  of  the  Amazon ;  or, 
A  Boy's  Journal  of  his  Adventures 
in  the  Tropical  Wilds  of  South 
America.  Profusely  Illustrated. 
Crown  8vo,  gilt  edges.  Price  6s. 
In  tlte  course  of  the  narrative  some  of 
the  numberless  animals,  as  well  as  a  few 
of  the  most  interesting  of  the  vegetable 
productions,  of  the  Amazonian  Valley 
are  described. 

Saved  from  the  Sea ;  or,  The  Loss 
of  the  Viper,  and  the  Adventures 
of  her  Crew  in  the  Great  Sahara. 
With  30  Full-page  Engravings. 
Crown  8vo,  gilt  edges.  Price  5s. 
A  young  sailor's  account  of  his  ovm 
adventures,  along  with  three  shipwrecked 
comrades. 

The  South  Sea  Whaler.  A  Story 
of  the  Loss  of  the  Champion,  and 
the  Adventures  of  her  Crew. 
With  upwards  of  30  Engravings. 
Crown  8vo,  gilt  edges.  Price  5s. 
A  tale  of  mutiny  and  shipwreck  in  the 
South  Seas,  the  captain  having  his  son 
and  daughter  on  board  with  him. 

In  the  Wilds  of  Florida.  With 
37  Engravings.  Crown  8vo,  gilt 
edges.     Price  5s. 

A  tale  of  warfare  and  hunting 


Twice  Lost.  With  Thirty -six 
Engravings.  Crown  8vo,  gilt 
edges.     Price  5s. 

A  young  sailor's  story  of  shipivreck, 
and  perilous  adventures  in  the  wilds  oj 
Australia. 

A  Voyage  Round  the  World. 
A  Tale  for  Boys.  With  42  En- 
gravings. Crown  8vo,  gilt  edges. 
Price  5s. 

A  young  sailor's  account  of  his  own 
adventures  by  sea  and  land,  the  scenes 
being  laid  chiefly  in  South  America,  the 
South  Sea  Islands,  and  Japan. 

Old  Jack.  A  Sea  Tale.  With 
66  Engravings.  Crown  8vo,  gilt 
edges.     Price  5s. 

An  old  sailor's  account  of  his  own  ad- 
ventures, during  times  of  peace  and  of 
war,  in  many  parts  of  the  world. 

The  Wanderers  ;  or  Adventures 
in  the  Wilds  of  Trinidad  and  up 
the  Orinoco.  With  30  Full-page 
Engravings.  Crown  8vo,  gilt 
edges.     Price  5s. 

A  Pennsylvanian  merchant  sets  out 
with  his  family  to  South  America,  and 
meets  with  many  adventures  by  sea  and 
land,  which  are  related  by  his  son. 

The  Young-  Llanero.  A  Story  of 
War  and  Wild  Life  in  Venezuela. 
With  44  Engravings.  Crown 
8vo,  gilt  edges.     Price  5s. 

A  thrilling  and  fascinating  narrative 
of  adventures  in  South  America. 

The  Young  Rajah.  A  Story  of 
Indian  Life  and  Adventure.  With 
upwards  of  40  Full-page  Engrav- 
ings. Crown  8vo,  gilt  edges.  5s. 
A  story  of  the  Indian  Mutiny;  the 
hero  a  young  Indian  prince,  who  had 
received  an  English  education  and  be- 
come a  Christian. 

My    First  Voyage   to   Southern 

Seas.       With    52     Engravings. 

Crown  8vo,  gilt  edges.     Price  5s. 

A  young  sailor's  story,  describing  Cape 

Colony,  Ceylon,  Aden,  etc. 


T.    NELSON  AND   SONS,    LONDON,    EDINBURGH,    AND   NEW   YORK. 


Works  on  Nature  and  Natural  History. 


Chips  from  the  Earth's  Crust ; 
or,  Short  Studies  in  Natural 
Science.  By  John  Gibson,  Natu- 
ral History  Department,  Edin- 
burgh Museum  of  Science  and 
Art ;  Author  of  ' '  Science  Glean- 
ings in  Many  Fields,"  etc.  With 
29  Illustrations.  Post  8vo,  cloth 
extra.     Price  2s.  6d. 

"  A  popular  account  of  the  Earth's  sur- 
face and  formation,  such  as  may  interest 
and  instruct  boys  of  an  inquiring  habit 
of  mind.  It  comprises  chapters  on  earth- 
quakes, ineteors,  tornadoes,  and  other 
phenomena." — Saturday  Review. 

Science  Gleanings  in  Many 
Fields.  By  John  Gibson,  Natu- 
ral History  Department,  Edin- 
burgh Museum  of  Science  and 
Art.  With  18  Illustrations.  Post 
8vo,  cloth  extra.     Price  2s.  6d. 

The  reader  will  find  "Science  Glean- 
ings "  rich  in  information  regarding  such 
interesting  topics  as  animal  intelligence, 
animal  mimicry,  the  weapons  of  animals, 
their  partnerships,  and  their  migrations. 
Much  information  is  also  given  regard- 
ing food  fishes  and  about  animals  with 
which,  whether  as  friends  or  foes,  man 
has  more  especially  to  do.  Glimpses  of 
the  past  life  of  the  globe  are  obtained  in 
the  essays  on  the  mammoth,  the  great 
auk,  and  other  extinct  animals. 

Monsters  of  the  Sea,  Legendary 
and  Authentic.  By  John  Gibson, 
Natural  History  Department, 
Edinburgh  Museum  of  Science 
and  Art,  Author  of  "Science 
Gleanings  in  Many  Fields,"  etc. 
With  16  Illustrations.  Foolscap 
8vo,  cloth  extra.     Price  Is.  6d. 

"  An  instructive  as  well  as  interesting 
little  book,  giving  an  account,  not  only 
of  genuine  sea  monsters  and  the  huge 
snakes  of  Brazilian  rivers,  but  also  of 
real  or  fabled  appearances  of  the  great 
sea-serpent  that  has  yet  to  be  caught." — 
Scotsman. 


In  the  Polar  Regions  ;  or,  Nature 
and  Natural  Histoiw  in  the  Frozen 
Zones.  With  Anecdotes  and 
Stories  of  Adventure  and  Travel. 
4G  Illustrations.  Post  8vo,  cloth 
extra.     Price  2s.  6d. 

In  the  Tropical  Regions ;  or, 
Nature  and  Natural  History  in 
the  Torrid  Zone.  With  Anec- 
dotes and  Stories  of  Adventure 
and  Travel.  78  Illustrations. 
Post  8vo,  cloth  extra.     2s.  6d. 

In  the  Temperate  Regions ;  or, 

Nature  and  Natural  History  in 
the  Temperate  Zones.  WitI) 
Anecdotes  and  Stories  of  Adven- 
ture and  Travel.  72  Illustrations. 
Post  8vo,  cloth  extra.     2s.  6d. 

"In  the  Polar,"  "In  the  Tropical," 
and  "In  the  Temperate  Regions,"  are 
three  companion  volumes,  though  each  is 
complete  in  itself.  The  full  title  suggests 
the  character  of  the  books.  They  are  re- 
plete with  information  on  the  animal  and 
vegetable  life  of  the  countries  described, 
and  abound  in  illustrations  in  elucida- 
tion of  the  text.  Good  books  either  for 
school  or  hxyme  libraries. 

Gaussen's  World's  Birthday.  Il- 
lustrated.   Foolscap  8vo.    2s.  6d. 

Lectures  delivered  to  an  audience  of 
young  people,  in  Geneva,  on  the  first 
chapter  of  Genesis.  The  discoveries  of 
astronomical  and  geological  science  are 
.  simply  explained,  and  harmonized  with 
the  statements  of  Scripture. 

Nature's  Wonders  ;  or,  How  God's 
Works  Praise  Him.  By  the  Rev. 
Richard  Newton,  D.D.  With 
53  Engravings.    Post  8vo.    2s.  6d. 

Addresses  to  young  persons,  on  various 
subjects  of  science  and  natural  history, 
to  show  "how  God's  works  praise  him." 
With  illustrative  anecdotes  and  engrav- 
ings. 


T.  NELSON  AND  SONS,  LONDON,  EDINBURGH,  AND  NEW  YORK. 


Works  on  Nature  and  Natural  History. 


The   Homes  of  the   Birds.      By 

M.  K.  M.,  Author  of  "  The  Birds 
We  See,"  etc.  With  65  Illustra- 
tions by  Giacomelli.  Post  8vo, 
cloth  extra.     Price  2s. 

A  charming  book  of  natural  history, 
written  in  a  very  attractive  style,  and 
illustrated  by  beautiful  engravings. 

Jenny  and  the  Insects ;  or,  Little 
Toilers  and  their  Industries. 
With  26  Illustrations  by  Giaco- 
melli. Post  8vo,  cloth  extra. 
Price  2s. 

The  insects  are  represented  as  telling 
their  several  histories.  Any  child,  after 
reading  this  book,  will  hardly  be  able  to 
pass  even  a  spider  without  being  reminded 
that  the  smallest  insects  have  each  and 
oil  their  allotted  tasks  to  perform. 

Things  in  the  Forest.  By  Mary 
and  Elizabeth  Kirby.  With 
Coloured  Frontispiece  and  Fifty 
Illustrations.  Royal  18mo.  Is.  6d. 

A  book  about  birds  ;  well  calculated  to 
encourage  a  taste  for  the  study  of  the 
natural  history  of  the  feathered  tribes. 

Sea-Birds  and  the  Lessons  of 
their  Lives.  By  Mrs.  Surr, 
Author  of  "Good  out  of  Evil." 
With  24  Illustrations  by  Gia- 
comelli and  other  Artists.  Post 
8vo.     Price  Is. 

Very  pleasantly  does  the  author  de- 
scribe the  birds  and  their  habits,  and 
gossip  about  them  for  the  entertainment 
and  instruction  of  the  young. 
Nature's  Wonders.  Pictures  of 
Remarkable  Scenes  in  Foreign 
Lands.  With  Coloured  Frontis- 
piece and  numerous  Engravings. 
Royal  18mo.     Price  Is. 

An  admirable  book  for  the  school  lib- 
rary or  a  school  reward.  The  informa- 
tion given  is  full  of  interest,  and  of  just 
the  kind  to  make  an  intelligent  lad  anx- 
ious to  pursue  the  study  further. 

What  Shall  We  Talk  About? 
A  Book  for  the  Young.  With  34 
Illustrations.  Post  8vo,  cloth 
extra.     Price  2s.  6d. 


Scenes  of  Wonder  in  Many 
Lands.  Being  Descriptions  of 
Rapids,  Cascades,  Waterfalls,  etc. 
With  Coloured  Frontispiece  and 
numerous  Engravings.  Royal 
18mo.     Price  Is. 

The  natural  wonders  here  described 
possess  imposing  or  striking  features, 
which  cannot  fail  to  make  them  of  in- 
terest to  the  young  reader,  and  to  foster 
in  him  a  love  of  reading  of  a  kind  that 
will  add  to  his  store  of  knowledge. 

Wonders  of  Creation.— Vol- 
canoes and  their  Phenomena. 
With  Coloured  Frontispiece  and 
numerous  Engravings.  Royal 
18mo.     Price  Is. 

The  descriptions  of  the  facts  and  pheno- 
mena connected  with  volcanic  agency  are 
brought  xoithin  the  comprehension  of 
young  minds. 

Wonders  of  the  Vegetable 
World.  With  Coloured  Frontis- 
piece and  numerous  Engravings. 
Royal  18mo.     Price  Is. 

A  volume  containing  a  large  amount 
of  interesting  information  regarding  some 
of  the  more  wonderful  among  the  trees 
and  plants  of  the  world.  The  descrip- 
tions are  clear  and  free  from  scientific 
technicalities,  and  each  subject  is  further 
illustrated  by  well-executed  pictures. 
The  Stars,  including  an  Account 
of  Nebulce,  Comets,  and  Meteors. 
With  50  Engravings.  Royal 
18mo.     Price  Is.  6d. 

A  small  volume  containing  a  large 
amount  of  information,  written  with  a 
view  to  serve  as" a  popular  guide  to  a 
knowledge  of  the  Stars  and  the  Sidereal 
World."  Scientific  details  are  relieved 
by  references  to  Greek  mythology,  and 
poetical  quotations. 

The   Sun,    Moon,    and    Planets. 

Their  Physical  Character,  Appear- 
ance, and  Phenomena.  With  46 
Engravings.  Royal  18mo.  Is.  6d. 
A  companion  volume  to  the  preceding 
one,  written  and  illustrated  in  the  same 
style,  regarding  the  wonders  of  our  own 
solar  system. 


T.    NELSON   AND   SONS,    LONDON,    EDINBURGH,    AND   NEW   YORK. 


Tales  for  the  Young. 


Alda's  Leap,  and  Other  Stories. 
By  the  Hon.  Mrs.  Greene. 
Foolscap  8vo,  cloth  extra.     Is. 

"  The  young  reader  will  find  a  great 
deal  to  delight  him.  The  stories  are 
pretty  and  well  told,  and  they  deserve 
praise." — Scotsman. 

The  Babe  i'  the  Mill,  and  Zanina 
the  Flower -Girl  of  Florence. 
By  the  Hon.  Mrs.  Greene. 
Foolscap  8vo,  cloth  extra.     Is. 

"  The  stories  are  strikingly  original, 
and  have  peculiar  quaintness  and  fresh- 
ness of  incident  and  dialogue." — Dublin 
Mail. 

The  Adopted  Brothers ;  or,  Blessed 
are  the  Peacemakers.  By  M.  E. 
Clements,  Author  of  "The  Story 
of  the  Beacon  Fire,"  etc.  Large 
foolscap  8vo,  cloth  extra.     Is. 

A  healthy  story  of  two  boys.  How  one 
by  fostering  jealousy  in  his  heart  brings 
much  misery  upon  himself  and  un- 
happiness  to  his  parents.  A  severe 
lesson  clears  away  the  mist,  and  the 
story  ends  in  sunshine. 

Annals  of  the  Poor.  Complete 
Edition,  with  Memoir  of  Legh 
Richmond.     Royal  18mo.     Is. 

A  cheap  edition  of  these  well-known 
Christian  narratives,  which  so  faithfully 
portray  true  piety  in  humble  life. 

The  Babes  in  the  Basket ;  or, 
Daph  and  Her  Charge.  By  the 
Author  of  "Timid  Lucy,"  etc. 
With  Coloured  Frontispiece  and 
numerous  Engravings.  Royal 
18mo.     Price  Is. 

The  Basket  of  Flowers  ;  or,  Piety 
and  Truth  Triumphant.  Illus- 
trated.    Royal  18mo.     Price  Is. 

A  suitable  story  for  a  girl  under 
tuxlve.  It  shows  thrd  right  principles 
will  sustain  through  greatest  trials.  Its 
incidents  are  interesting  without  being 
sensational. 


The  Giants,  and  how  to  Fight 
them.  By  the  Rev.  Richard 
Newton,  D.D.  With  Coloured 
Frontispiece  and  numerous  En- 
gravings.    Royal  18mo.     Is. 

Dr.  Newton  possesses  in  the  highest  de- 
gree the  art  of  interesting  and  instruct- 
ing the  young.  The  giants  he  here  treats 
of  are  Selfishness,  Ill-temper,  Intemper- 
ance, and  the  like. 

Godliness  with  Contentment  is 
Great  Gain.  With  Coloured 
Frontispiece.     Royal  18mo.     Is. 

A  book  for  little  boys  and  girls. 

The  Harrington  Girls ;  or,  Faith 
and  Patience.  By  Sophy  Wix- 
throp.  With  Coloured  Frontis- 
piece.    Royal  18mo.     Price  Is. 

On  a  very  limited  income  three  sisters 
manage  to  maintain  a  comfortable  and 
cheerful  home,  and  perform  sundry 
charitable  actions  which  meet  with  their 
due  reward. 

Hope  On  ;  or,  The  House  that 
Jack  Built.  With  Coloured 
Frontispiece  and  25  Engravings. 
Royal  18mo.     Price  Is. 

The  story  of  two  orphans,  forsaken  and 
destitute  in  a  great  city :  how  God  helped 
them,  and  how  they  helped  others  in  the 
end. 

The  Story  of  the  Lost  Emerald  ; 
or,  Overcome  Evil  with  Good. 
By  Mrs.  Emma  Marshall,  Au- 
thor of  "Over  the  Down,"  etc. 
Large  foolscap  8vo,  cloth  extra. 
Price  Is. 

A  very  interesting  story  hangs  round 
this  title.  All  who  would  hear  of  the. 
valuable  gem,  of  the  various  hands  it 
passed  through,  and  how  it  was  alter- 
nately a  curse  and  a  blessing  to  its 
various  possessors,  should  read  this  little 
volume. 


T.    NELSON   AND   SONS.    LONDON,    EDINBURGH,    AND   NEW   YORK.